A Kingdom Divided
by Jannalle
Summary: Medieval AU featuring knights, intrigue, and Percabeth. The peasants of Atlantis are discontent; they blame the king for the troubles plaguing their nation. Prince Perseus agrees to a political marriage with Lady Annabeth in order to stabilize the kingdom, but his fiancee is keeping a dangerous secret. Their union might be the tipping point for a country on the verge of rebellion.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hey everyone! Thanks for reading 'A Kingdom Divided'! This story is set in late Medieval times (late 14th/early 15th century), in the fictional country of Atlantis. I've spent a LOT of time researching the time period (seriously, I'd say well over 100 hours), including some minute and seemingly insignificant details, in order to make the story as accurate and detailed as possible. That being said, there may be some minor differences, because this is an AU story. Atlantis is based on the kingdoms of Medieval Europe, but Medieval customs varied by country and region. The same will be true for Atlantis. History buffs should note similarities between Atlantis and England, France, Austria, Spain, and a few other countries-but with a few small tweaks to give the kingdom its own, unique, culture.**

 **For those of you who find history fascinating, but aren't familiar with many of the terms and customs-don't worry. I've done my best to explain them throughout the story so far. For example, this chapter contains a section where Percy trains with a quintain (a Medieval device used to help knights practice their 'tilting,' or jousting, skills). I explain what the device looked like, how it worked, and what its purpose was in the story below. So, you don't need to know much about history to enjoy and understand this story.**

 **The only detail that might not be clear relates to the layout of the castle. I have more information about this in the ending author's note (I wouldn't want to scare readers away with an essay for the opening note!), but what you need to know is that the term 'bailey' refers to the space within a castle's walls. If I say that a person in the story is walking across the bailey, I mean that the person is outside, crossing a walled enclosure (e.g. a courtyard).**

 **That's all for now, folks! Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Prince Perseus smiled as he led his horse out of the castle stables. The sun was shining brightly overhead, and the grass covering the inner bailey was green once more; spring had finally returned to Atlantis. That realization put the prince in high spirits. He'd spent four long winter months cooped up in Merchester Castle, and Percy was eager to roam free once more. He knew that his horse felt the same, so he figured than an outing would benefit both of them. Also, the prince needed to refresh his jousting skills—the kingdom's annual spring tournament was happening the next day, but Percy had not practiced at all throughout the winter. That put him at a significant disadvantage compared to some of the other knights, who lived in warmer areas of the country and were able to practice year-round.

Percy reached out to pat his horse's dark mane. He had his work cut out for him.

"Are you ready, Blackjack?"

The horse answered by tossing his head and pawing the grass beneath his feet. Percy laughed at the animal's eagerness, and then mounted the gelding with ease. He grabbed the reigns, but held them loosely so that Blackjack could move comfortably.

The horse was so well trained that he turned to the gatehouse without any direction, and began to walk towards it. The inner gate was kept open during the day, so Percy and Blackjack rode through without any interference. They entered the middle bailey, but Percy signalled for Blackjack to turn before they reached the castle's second set of gates. Blackjack complied, and Percy led him across the clearing until they reached the quintain—a pole, resting vertically on another pole, with a shield attached to one end and a heavy bag of sand attached to the other end.

Percy's squire was standing beside the apparatus, waiting patiently for the prince to arrive. He held a lance in one hand, and a large bag rested by his feet.

Percy pulled Blackjack to a stop beside the squire.

"Sorry to have kept you waiting, Ethan. I was delayed at the stables."

Ethan shrugged. "That's alright, your highness. I haven't been waiting long."

"Good." Percy glanced at the bag by the boy's feet. "Is that my armour?"

"Yes, sire."

Ethan bent down and pulled open the lid of the bag, revealing the shiny plate armour lying underneath. He began removing the armour from the bag while Percy dismounted Blackjack, then he grabbed the chainmail and started to dress the prince in silence. He finished several minutes later by fastening Percy's helmet.

The prince thanked Ethan for his help before turning back towards Blackjack. Getting back on the horse was relatively difficult, because Percy's armour weighed him down and limited his mobility, but he managed to remount without any assistance. After settling in, he grabbed the lance from Ethan's outstretched arm and rode until he was forty feet away from the quintain.

Percy stared at the apparatus as he reviewed the next steps in his mind. His goal was to hit the shield attached to the pole, and then avoid getting hit by the bag of sand when his strike forced the pole to pivot. It sounded simple, but Percy knew better than to underestimate the challenge. Most knights spent _years_ trying to master the quintain, first as pages, then as squires, and finally continuing their training as knights. Percy had taken to it naturally as a young boy—like he did with most equestrian endeavors—but even he needed to practice often to maintain his skills.

Blackjack began to paw the ground beneath him, which signalled to Percy that he was impatient to begin. The prince indulged his horse by urging the mount forward. Then, he titled the lance in his right hand until it was even with the shield. He maintained a tight grip and kept his shoulder firm as the target approached. He hit the center of the shield while Blackjack was at a gallop, then he leaned forward into his mount to avoid the swinging bag of sand. The bag raced just over his head, with enough force to knock a knight from his mount.

Percy grinned triumphantly as he sat up straight, then he thrusted his lance high into the air victoriously. Blackjack slowed down to a canter beneath him, then the horse turned around and brought Percy back to his original position forty feet in front of the quintain. Ethan reset the device so that the shield was facing Percy directly, and the prince repeated his efforts, with the same results. He spent the next hour tilting at the quintain before he decided to quit for the day.

He dismounted Blackjack and removed his helmet, then wiped the sweat from his brow.

"I think that'll be all for today, Ethan. Can you help me with my armour?"

The dark-haired boy before him nodded. "Of course, sire."

They spent the next few minutes removing Percy's armour, and once Ethan returned the final piece to its bag, the prince sighed in relief. Moving was much easier without the metal plates weighing him down.

"Can you take the armour back to my chamber and put it away?" Percy questioned.

Maintaining the prince's armour was part his squire's job, but Ethan had only been training with Percy for a week, so he was still unfamiliar with most of his duties.

Still, the boy was a hard worker. He nodded in response to Percy's request, and reached for the bag without hesitation. "Certainly."

Ethan grunted as he hefted the bag over one shoulder. It must have weighed almost as much as the squire himself, but the boy carried it away without complaint.

Percy turned back to Blackjack as the boy left. He moved to mount the horse, but stopped when the movement hurt his aching muscles. Both he and Blackjack were sore from practice, so Percy decided to walk his horse back to the stables. He grabbed the reins lightly with his left hand, then gently guided Blackjack across the middle bailey and towards the inner gate. They passed through the gate's stone tunnel slowly, and then cut across the inner bailey before reaching the stables.

A stable hand met them at the door and accepted the reins from Percy.

"I worked him hard today," the prince mentioned before leaving, "so give him some extra water and feed. He's earned it."

Percy made his way back to the gatehouse after that. He entered the tower at the gatehouse's right side and began to climb the spiral stone staircase leading up to his apartment. The stairs were tilted slightly for defensive purposes, so Percy had to place a hand on the wall for balance as he climbed. He paused after reaching the first floor and briefly considered climbing further to visit his mother's apartment on the second floor, but a quick glance out the tower's window caused the prince to change his mind. He needed to meet with his father before the Privy Council meeting at noon, but the sun was almost at its peak. That meant he didn't have much time.

Having made his decision, Percy pushed open the heavy wooden door at the edge of the first floor landing and entered the hallway behind it. He passed a number of doorways before finally stopping in front of the one leading to his bedchamber. He entered that room quickly, and immediately walked over to his bedside table. The table was made of dark wood and held intricate carvings, but those details were of little interest to the prince at the moment—he was more interested in what the table held. Resting atop the dark surface was a porcelain pitcher and basin, and a linen towel laid beside them.

Percy grabbed the pitcher and poured its contents into the basin, before he returned it to the table. The prince then used both of his hands to splash water onto his face and neck. The liquid cooled his clammy skin and washed the sweat from his face, which left the prince feeling sufficiently refreshed. He finished by washing his hands and forearms, then dumping the last of the pitcher's contents over his head while he hovered over the bowl.

Percy ran both hands through his hair to get rid of the excess liquid, then grabbed the linen towel from the table and used it to dry off. Once that was done, he threw the towel on his bed—the servants would clean it later—and left his room. He travelled back down the hallway, descended the stairs, and exited the gatehouse. He'd barely stepped foot onto the bailey when he spotted a familiar figure exit the gatehouse tunnel.

Percy watched as the blond man strolled casually across the courtyard, wearing a thoughtful frown as he surveyed his surroundings. The prince called out a greeting before realizing that he did not have time to talk if he was going to talk speak with his father before the council meeting. Nevertheless, that realization came too late, because the man turned, and his warm brown eyes settled on Percy.

The man grinned, then began walking the prince's direction. Percy moved to meet him halfway. Once they were within a few feet of each other, the man stopped walking and dipped his head respectfully.

"Your highness."

Percy nodded to acknowledge the greeting. Then, even though it was unnecessary for a royal, he dipped his own head. "Duke."

The Duke of Attica noticed Percy's courtesy, and smiled with pleasure as he spoke, "I'm on my way to meet your father, but I'm glad I saw you first."

Percy's eyebrows rose before he could mask his surprise. The House of Attica was out of favour with the crown—it had been for several decades, ever since the former duke's failed coup against Percy's grandfather. Thus, it was rare for the current duke to be permitted at court. His warm greeting was even more unexpected.

"Me?" Percy clarified, "You want to speak with me?"

"Of course!" The duke beamed, "Please, allow me to extend my sincerest congratulations. The Duchess and I could not be happier. Lady Annabeth… well, she also feels quite strongly about the matter."

Percy stared at the duke, uncomprehending. Finally, after several seconds of silence, he admitted, "I'm not sure what you're referring to."

The duke's smile dimmed. "You don't know?"

Percy hesitated, and the duke took a quick step backwards.

"Forgive me, your highness." The duke bowed, "I assumed that the king would have told you—I see now that I was mistaken."

Percy scowled. That explained everything; his father rarely told Percy anything of importance.

The prince smiled stiffly to hide his irritation. "Your apology is unnecessary, Duke. The king has been busy lately, but he's asked to speak with me privately before today's council meeting. I'm sure he planned to tell me all about the matter then."

The Duke looked relieved. He nodded, "I'm certain he will. Anyways, I'll be glad to see you at the council meeting."

" _You'll_ be at the meeting?" Percy spluttered in bewilderment. Only the king's closest advisors were admitted into the Privy Council. Percy was the Crown Prince of Atlantis, and yet he had only been admitted the previous year, when he turned 18. How had the Duke of Attica—a rival to the king—risen from his outsider status so quickly, that he was now a trusted advisor?

To his credit, the Duke's eyes widened. "Has the king told you _nothing_?!"

Then, as if realizing the impertinence of his words, he muttered another apology.

Percy just waved the words away. He was irritated, but it wasn't the Duke's fault. "It's fine. As I mentioned, my father is busy. He simply hasn't had the time to tell me."

Neither man believed that excuse, but they did not contradict it. They simply stared at each other in tense silence until Percy regained his composure. He cleared his throat and changed the subject. "You said you're looking for my father. Is he expecting you?"

"Yes," the duke answered, "we arranged this meeting yesterday."

Percy frowned. "That's odd. He doesn't usually forget appointments, but he asked me to meet him now as well. He must have forgotten that he'd already agreed to meet you."

"It's possible," the duke allowed, "but I don't think he did. Given the nature of what we planned to discuss… well, my guess is that he wanted to include you in the meeting."

Percy perked up slightly at that. His father rarely included him in official state business. Being admitted into one of his confidential meetings would be a nice change.

He grinned at the duke. "Then let's walk there together, shall we?"

The blond man nodded in response, and they set off towards the south-west tower together. Percy entered the tower first, but the duke followed him closely. They climbed the spiral staircase to the second floor, then walked down the hallway until they reached the council chamber. Two guards stood outside the door leading into the room, but they let both men pass without incident.

Percy glanced around the room as he stepped through the doorway. It was sparsely furnished, with a long, rectangular table surrounded by chairs. One chair was larger and more intricately carved than the rest. It sat at the far end of the table, and it was occupied. The occupant was none other than the king—a dark-haired man in his late forties, whose green eyes were focused intently on Percy and the duke.

After several moments of silence, the king stood to greet them.

"Welcome," he smiled and stretched his arms wide, "I'm glad you're both here. Now please, take a seat. We have important matters to discuss."

Percy realized that the duke had guessed right; King Poseidon clearly intended to meet with both of them together. He took the chair to his father's immediate right, which was his right as the crown prince. The Duke of Attica walked around the table and sat on the king's left side. Both he and Percy turned to look expectantly at the king, but Poseidon was looking at Percy.

The king cleared his throat before announcing, "So, my son. We are here to discuss your marriage."

"My marriage?!" Percy was so shocked that he almost choked on his own tongue, but neither of the other two men seemed concerned. They were smiling broadly at him.

"Yes," Poseidon confirmed, "you are now engaged to the Duke of Attica's daughter, Lady Annabeth."

* * *

 **Short A/N: So that's the first chapter! I hope you all enjoyed it. :) No pressure, but I would really love some reviews to let me know how I did. Also, please tell me if anything was unclear or if I need to explain the historical aspects better-my plan is to entertain you, not confuse you!**

 **Long A/N for the few people who actually care about my ramblings: As promised, I'll provide some more information about the castle layout here.**

 **Merchester Castle is the main royal residence in this story, and it is based on the real Harlech Castle. I've made a few modifications, but feel free to google the floor plan if you want a basic idea of the castle lay out. Remember,** **a bailey (AKA ward) is the space between the walls of a castle (similar to a courtyard). Merchester Castle has a concentric design, which means that it has multiple walls and baileys. Just like Harlech Castle, Merchester Castle has three walls. The first, outermost, wall is also the shortest. It is a preliminary means of defense. Just inside the outer wall is the outer bailey. This is a large open space where residents of the town of Merchester (located adjacent to the castle) could congregate for protection if an enemy army ever attacked. It is also where the jousting tournament, which I've planned for Chapter 3, will take place. The bailey ends at the middle wall-a taller and better protected, but smaller, wall. It surrounds the middle bailey. Similarly, middle bailey ends at the inner wall. This wall, and its gatehouse, are the tallest and best fortified part of the castle. The height is important, because it means that the defenders still had an advantage if their enemy managed to take the outer/middle wall(s). The inner wall surrounds the inner bailey, which is much smaller than the other baileys, but also (as I already mentioned) much better protected. The most important buildings in the castle were located within the inner bailey. These included the Great Hall, Great Chambers (the king and his family's apartments), the chapel, etc.**

 **Also, as a small side note, I'm Canadian! This is relevant for one reason only: terminology. I didn't realize, but apparently North Americans and Europeans (I'm not sure about other continents, sorry!) use different terms when discussing floor plans. As a Canadian, I would normally use the terms ground floor and first floor interchangeably. That's because, in North America, they mean the same thing. We call the ground floor Floor 1, the floor above it Floor 2, etc. Apparently, this is different from in Europe, where the ground floor is ALWAYS the ground floor, and the floor above it is actually Floor 1 (the North American Floor 2). This doesn't seem like an important detail, but it was pretty confusing for me when I tried researching Harlech's layout. For some reason, I kept getting different images for the first and ground floors. That made no sense to me until I realized that the "first floor" on the blueprints was actually what I would call a second floor. Even though I'm Canadian, I'll use the European term for this story, because Atlantis is based upon Medieval kingdoms. My North American readers will just have to adjust (sorry!).**

 **Anyways, that's it for now. Sorry for the ridiculously long Author's Note. I'll try to keep it shorter next time, but there were a few important details to clarify for the first chapter. I'll leave you now with this: thanks for reading! I hope you liked it and I'll begin working on the next chapter later today. I'll try not to keep you waiting too long for it.**

 **Oops! One last thing. I didn't post a disclaimer because no one could POSSIBLY confuse me for Rick Riordan. For those of you who really like disclaimers though, I'll say it once now: I am not Rick Riordan. I own nothing (seriously, I recently finished university and have tons of debt, so I'm pretty poor). There, I think that's good enough to cover the whole story. You'll only have to read the disclaimer once. Bye!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hey everyone! I'll keep this authors note short, but I just want to say two things.**

 **First, thank you so much to everyone who followed/favourited this story/myself. I really appreciate it! Also, a special thank you to LEOFLAMINGVALDEZ for writing a review (awesome pen name by the way).**

 **Second, I want to explain that a marquess is a nobleman ranked lower than a duke, but higher than an earl. A marquess rules over a "march," which is essentially an earldom located along a country's border (border earldoms or "marches" typically see more conflict than regular earldoms, so marquesses are given a higher status). This information will become relevant in the second part of this chapter.**

 **Thanks for reading and enjoy!**

* * *

 _Last Chapter:_

 _The king cleared his throat before announcing, "So, my son. We are here to discuss your marriage."_

" _My marriage?!" Percy was so shocked that he choked on air, but neither of the other two men seemed concerned. They were smiling broadly at him._

" _Yes," Poseidon confirmed, "you are now engaged to the Duke of Attica's daughter, Lady Annabeth."_

* * *

Percy's green eyes went wide as he stared at his father in shock, but King Poseidon just laughed.

"See, Duke?" The king gestured to his son. "He's speechless."

Percy _was_ speechless, but more out of shock than pleasure. He shook his head, as if to clear it, but when his eyes refocused, his father and the Duke were still staring at him expectantly. That meant what he'd heard was real, not part of an odd dream.

"My marriage?!" Percy repeated, but this time his voice sounded strained. The duke seemed to notice, because his smile faltered.

"Does this arrangement not please you?"

"Don't be ridiculous!" Poseidon cut in before Percy could answer. "Prince Perseus is overcome with joy."

The king sent his son a meaningful look, so Percy forced a smile onto his face. "The king is correct. Of course I am pleased, Duke. It would be an honour to marry your daughter. Please forgive my lapse in manners, and know that it was surprise, not displeasure, that kept me from saying so sooner."

The words rolled off his tongue with surprising ease; Percy was not usually so eloquent. Nevertheless, he had obviously said the right thing, because his father and the duke both nodded their approval.

"Excellent." The king clapped his hands together, effectively returning the men's attention to him. "Now, let's move on to the details. Perseus, you will meet Lady Annabeth at the spring tournament in two days' time. Your engagement will be announced publicly then, and the wedding will take place forty days afterward."

Percy's head was swimming, but he nodded his approval. Forty days was not an unusual engagement period. He could use that time to adjust to the idea of getting married. He was nineteen, so he should have reconciled himself to it years ago. As the crown prince of Atlantis, it was his duty to marry, so that he could produce a legitimate heir.

The fact that he had never met Lady Annabeth before did not matter. Many royals met their spouses for the first time on their wedding day. At least Percy could meet Annabeth at the tournament first.

A loud knock drew the prince out of his thoughts. He turned his neck to the right just in time to see the chamber door open. A fully armoured guard stepped into the room. When he spoke, he addressed Poseidon.

"The Duke of Titania has arrived for the Privy Council meeting. Is he permitted to enter, or shall I tell him to wait?"

Rather than answer the guard immediately, Poseidon looked to the Duke of Attica. "Are you pleased with these arrangements, in addition to the terms we agreed upon earlier for the dowry and your status at court?"

The blond noble nodded. "Yes, your highness."

"Good." Poseidon turned to the guard. "Then our business is concluded. The duke may enter."

Underneath his breath, the king added for Percy's ears alone, "I will tell you more details after the council meeting."

Percy nodded slightly to show that he heard, just as a new figure entered the room.

The Duke of Titania took two brisk steps into the chamber before stopping abruptly. He was an unusually tall man with graying black hair, who might have been handsome if he ever bothered to smile. Court gossip suggested that the duke was born with a frown on his face, and he had worn it ever since. Nevertheless, Percy knew that the rumour wasn't true—every once in a while, the duke exchanged his frown for a sneer.

In fact, the duke did so at that moment. Then he lifted one pale finger and pointed at the Duke of Attica.

"What," he spat, "is _he_ doing here."

The Duke of Attica barely reacted. He didn't appear surprised at the other duke's cold greeting, but managed to maintain a calm façade. Only the slight twitch in his jaw betrayed the blond duke's anger.

King Poseidon did not bother to hide his own irritation. "The Duke of Attica has been restored to favour at court. He is here because _I_ invited him, and he will serve as the council's newest member."

"What?!" The Duke of Titania spluttered, "But—is that wise? His family led the rebellion against your father!"

The king jumped up from his chair and slammed both his hands on the table before him. "Do notquestion my wisdom! _"_

The room went silent. No one dared risk the king's wrath by speaking.

Eventually, Poseidon took a deep breath and spoke in a lower decibel. "I am your king, and this is my council. I may appoint any man I choose. It is not your place to question me."

The Duke of Titania paled. He gave a shallow bow before speaking, "Forgive me, your highness. I did not intend to question you, or your wisdom. I merely meant to advise you, according to my duty as a council member."

Poseidon accepted the apology with a sharp nod, and then he returned to his seat. Unfortunately, the duke was not done speaking.

"I must say though—I'm curious about _why_ you restored the Duke of Attica to favour." The Duke of Titania frowned even deeper than usual, as though he was greatly troubled. "Is it the provinces? Has our situation there become so dire, that you would turn to a known traitor for help?"

Percy felt his brow furrow. What was happening in the provinces? He looked to his father for an explanation, and noticed that the king's face was an unusual shade of red. The duke had hit a nerve.

"Sit down, Duke," Poseidon spoke in a clipped voice, "lest you find that there is no seat left for you on this council."

The implied threat was enough to ensure the Duke of Titania's compliance. He crossed the room quickly and sat in the chair next to Percy. The prince was momentarily surprised—the duke normally sat across from him, in the third highest chair of honour—but then he realized the reason for the tension in the room. The Dukedom of Attica was the oldest, largest, and most powerful dukedom in Atlantis. That meant that the Duke of Attica had just supplanted the Duke of Titania as the most powerful nobleman on the council, and the latter man was not pleased.

The Duke of Titania was barely seated before he opened his mouth to speak once more.

"I suppose," he began in a callous tone," that I should congratulate you for your sudden change in fortune, Frederick."

The Duke of Attica clenched his jaw at the other man's disrespect. "I do not mind if you avoid the pretense of my title, Kronos, as long as long as I may do the same with you."

Kronos sneered. "Perhaps we should stick to 'Duke,' then."

Frederick agreed, and the silence resumed. This time, it was not broken until several minutes later, when more Privy Councillors arrived. The new councillors raised their eyebrows upon noticing Frederick, but wisely kept their surprise to themselves.

Once all the councillors were present and seated, Poseidon cleared his throat. All the men's attention turned to him, and the king began with his regular greeting.

"Welcome, councillors. Thank you for coming. Now let's attend to business." The king drew a deep breath before gesturing to Frederick. "We have a new member. The Duke of Attica is a welcome addition to the council, and he is here at my invitation. I trust you will all treat him accordingly."

Each of the council members gave an obligatory nod, but Percy noticed that a select few were frowning. They didn't appear to like the duke's return to favour any more than Kronos did. No one voiced their concern, however, so the meeting moved on. All of the councillors were high-ranking nobles from different areas of the country, so they spent the rest of the meeting updating the king on the events happening in their domains. The Duke of Attica began the discussion, but he was the only one to give an entirely positive report. The other nobles' accounts were troubling; Lord Ares reported that small raiding parties were disturbing the borders of his march, Lord Hephaestus described food shortages in his earldom (despite having a plentiful harvest the year before), and Lord Hermes explained that the storehouses and barns in his march kept catching on fire in the night. The worst news, however, was brought by Lord Apollo, who announced that the plague had returned to the largest market town in his earldom. Not all of the nobles had delivered their reports, but Poseidon interrupted after Lord Apollo's speech.

"I have heard enough." The king's expression was grim as he looked around his circle of advisors. "Our situation is grave, my friends."

Percy, who had remained silent throughout the reports, chose that moment to speak.

"This many incidents occurring at once cannot be a matter of chance."

The entire council turned to look at him. Some of the men wore surprised expressions—the prince rarely spoke during their meetings—while others appeared mildly impressed with his observation.

Frederick was the first to voice his agreement. "Prince Perseus is right. It seems highly improbable that these events are all independent of each other. Something, or someone, is causing all this trouble."

"Who would do such a thing?" Lord Hermes questioned.

Kronos frowned as he responded. "I may know the answer. Some of your stories suggest that a higher power is responsible—who else could control the plague, or make food disappear into thin air? No man is capable of such feats."

Half of the councillors nodded along to Kronos's speech, but the other half wore skeptical frowns. Kronos read their expressions, and then continued to argue his case. "That is not all. I have not had the chance to give my report yet, but I'll deliver it now. There are rumours circulating in Titania. Travelling merchants have told the people about Atlantis's troubles, and some people believe that witches are to blame."

A grave silence settled over the room at those words. None of the men in that meeting had ever met a witch, but they'd all heard terrible stories about them. Witches were immoral women who sold their souls to the devil in exchange for magical powers. They delighted in wreaking havoc for good Christian men and women, and they were considered responsible for all the unexplainable tragedies that befell Christian kingdoms. Unfortunately, witches' craftiness meant that they were exceptionally difficult to identify. The only conclusive proof of their guilt was an indelible mark on their skin, which was left by the devil to seal their bargain. The mark could resemble a mole, birthmark, or other blemish to avoid suspicion, but experts—called inquisitors—claimed that they could tell the difference between a natural mark and an unnatural one.

"God help us."

It was King Poseidon who spoke, but the other men quickly murmured their assent. Only one man remained silent.

The Duke of Attica was unusually pale when he spoke, "Do we have proof that witches are at fault?"

"The plague has returned!" Kronos countered, "What other proof do we need?"

"Solid proof." Frederick responded. "We need _actual evidence_ that witches are to blame before we draw any conclusions. Word of Atlantis's troubles is spreading throughout the country, and soon, the people will demand answers. If we tell them that witches are to blame, it will cause a panic and spark unsanctioned witch hunts. Law and order will break down as people turn on their neighbours, and we will have a disaster on our hands."

Kronos opened his mouth to argue, but Poseidon lifted a hand to silence him.

"The Duke of Attica is correct," the king sighed wearily, "the mere mention of witches will cause panic in the provinces. We must crush these rumours before they spread any further, and investigate the matter discretely. We will not make any announcements about the cause or correlation of Atlantis's troubles until we've determined whether or not witches are involved."

Percy thought that his father's idea was wise, but many of the councillors were frowning.

"How can we crush the rumours?" Lord Apollo questioned, "Gossip like this spreads quickly."

The king did not hesitate before answering. "Arrest any man or woman discussing the matter. Announce that the rumours are false, and charge the gossipers with 'inciting panic in the populace.' That will stop the word from spreading."

Most councillors nodded approvingly at the king's idea. Poseidon glanced at them each in turn, then began to speak once more.

"Good. Then the matter is settled, so I will draw this meeting to a close. You may go, but I expect to see you all at the spring tournament in two days."

Despite the somber mood of the room, King Poseidon winked at his son. Percy felt his face warm, but he refused to acknowledge the nobles' curious stares. He was still trying to wrap his head around everything he'd just learned—including his engagement and the problems in the provinces—so he needed time to speak with the king in private. Telling the nobles of his engagement would just delay their departure. Also, Lord Ares would probably begin sharing crude jokes, and Percy had enough to think about without the marquess planting thoughts in his head.

The prince loitered until the nobles, including the Duke of Attica, left the council chamber. Then, he turned to look at his father.

The king raised his eyebrows at his son. "I'm sure you have questions."

Percy nodded. He had so _many_ questions, in fact, that he hardly knew where to begin. "Tell me everything."

Poseidon laughed, but he agreed. "Alright, son. I guess I owe you that."

The king paused, and his expression grew somber as he began his explanation. "Atlantis is in a dire situation. You learned that much from the meeting. What you don't know is that many of the peasants blame me. I have spies all across this country, in both noble and peasant households. Some spies have reported that the peasants are growing discontent. They've heard about the raiding parties, the unexplained fires, and the plague from travelling merchants. They're afraid, and they believe that I am to blame for their troubles."

"You?" Percy shook his head. "That doesn't make sense. You can't control the plague, and why would you send raiding parties against your own nobles?"

"They don't believe that I'm orchestrating the events," Poseidon corrected, "but they think that my failure to stop these tragedies is proof that I'm an unfit king. I'm afraid that if our situation doesn't improve soon, the peasants' discontent will inspire them to revolt."

A grim frown crossed the king's face. He knew what destruction a rebellion could bring.

"If a rebellion occurs," the king continued, "I will need my nobles' support to survive it. That is why I returned the Duke of Attica to favour. He is a powerful ally, and your marriage to his daughter will secure his support."

Percy's brow furrowed as he tried to digest everything that his father had told him. "Why didn't you tell the councillors about all this? If a rebellion is coming, they will need time to prepare."

"How could I tell them without mentioning the spies that gave me this information?" Poseidon shook his head. "It is best not to warn them until I've consolidated my position, anyways. Nobles are always grasping for power. If I warned them that a rebellion was coming, and they thought that the movement would succeed, they might rally peasants themselves."

Percy knew that what the king said was true. A royal was as vulnerable as he was powerful, and the greatest threat to his life was the ambition of his nobles.

"Anyways," Poseidon changed the subject with a wave of his hand, "I know that I surprised you earlier with your engagement, but you handled it maturely. This marriage is important for the stability of the realm. I'm glad you understand that."

"I do understand." Percy confirmed, but his voice waivered as he spoke. The king noticed his hesitation and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"I know that the prospect of marrying a stranger seems daunting right now. I felt the same way when I learned of my engagement to your mother, but the queen and I grew to love each other in time. I'm sure that you and Lady Annabeth will do the same." Poseidon hesitated, then continued, "I am proud of you son. It is not easy to put the kingdom's needs before your own, but your willingness to do so tells me that you'll be a great king someday."

Percy went red at his father's words. The king didn't praise him often, so he treasured the few compliments he received.

"Thank you, Father."

Percy was still smiling when he left the council chamber several minutes later. He would marry a hag if it made his father proud.

Then again, he'd never met Lady Annabeth before, so it was possible that he would have to do just that.

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 **So, that's Chapter 2! There wasn't much action in this chapter, but a lot of the information mentioned above will become important later on. You also got a quick glimpse into the father-son relationship between Percy and Poseidon.**

 **Some of you mind find it odd that Percy accepted his arranged marriage so easily. That's because we're used to being able to choose our own partners, and to marry for love. Nevertheless, arranged marriages were the norm for medieval royals. They married for political reasons (like Percy and Annabeth), and they were expected to _learn_ to love one another. As mentioned in the story, many royals didn't even meet their spouses until their wedding ceremony! That may seem crazy to us, but it's just the way things were for royals back then. I'm doing my best to be historically accurate, so I won't be imposing modern values about marriage on the characters in this story. _That's_ why Percy accepts his engagement so easily. **

**Also, as a small historical note, everything I mentioned about witches (and witches' marks) was true. Moles, birthmarks, scars, and other blemishes were considered "proof" that the owner was a practicing witch/warlock. Expert "inquisitors" claimed that they could tell a natural blemish from a witches mark, but realistically, if someone accused of witchcraft was found to have one of the blemishes listed above, they were usually condemned and tortured. Knowing this makes me VERY glad that I don't live in medieval times, because I'm covered in moles, have a scar on my forehead, and have a birthmark on my leg. If anyone accused me of witchcraft, I'd have been condemned for sure.**

 **Anyways, thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I would really appreciate reviews.**

 **(Also, we'll meet Annabeth next chapter).**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Thanks again to everyone who followed or favourited this story. I'd also like to issue a special thank you to GriffinGirl8655, ACosmos97, and PrincessOfAtlantis101 for reviewing-I dedicate this chapter to you guys! :)**

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Two days after the Privy Council meeting, Queen Sally found her son pacing the length of his bedchamber. The prince did not seem to notice her presence, so she opened her mouth to greet him.

Before she could say anything, Percy came to a sudden stop. He muttered something unintelligible under his breath, and then executed a shallow bow. The queen raised her eyebrows, but shut her mouth. She decided to wait patiently for the prince to notice her. In the meantime, she could watch him and try to make sense of his odd behaviour.

Percy straightened his back, shook his head, and resumed his pacing. He paused again a moment later and bowed a little lower.

This time, when he mumbled, Queen Sally heard every word.

"Pleased to meet you, Lady Annabeth—no. _It's a pleasure to meet you,_ Lady Annabeth—no."

The queen smiled softly to herself as she watched her son stumble over his words. She remembered being just as nervous the first time she met Poseidon, back when the king was still a prince.

After several more moments of watching her son pace, bow, and mumble, Sally decided to take pity on him. She cleared her throat loudly, and held back a laugh when Percy whirled around to face her. The prince's green eyes went comically wide as he noticed her.

"Mother!" His face turned a brilliant shade of red, "How long have you been standing there?!"

"Long enough." The queen admitted. She grinned before adding, "I think you should use 'Pleased to meet you, Lady Annabeth' with a shallow bow. It makes the best impression."

Percy spluttered for a few seconds before finally accepting her advice with a quiet, "Alright. Thank you."

"My pleasure," the queen smiled, "but I did not come here just to embarrass you. I came to tell you that the Duke of Attica and his family have arrived. They're in the throne room, waiting to meet you. Your father and I will keep them occupied until you're ready, but don't dawdle."

"Okay," Percy tried to appear confident by standing a little straighter, but the queen noticed that he was fidgeting more than usual, "I'll be down in a minute."

Sally tried not to let her amusement show as she excused herself and exited the room. She gave her smile free rein, however, after pulling the bedchamber door shut behind her. Her smile grew when she noticed Poseidon walking down the corridor towards her.

"Is everything alright?" The king asked. "You were gone longer than I expected."

"Everything is fine." Sally gave her husband a conspiratorial grin, "Percy just needed some time to practice his greeting."

"To Lady Annabeth?"

Sally nodded, and Poseidon responded with an amused smirk, but his smile turned sheepish soon after.

"I wish I had thought of that." The king admitted. Twenty years had passed since they first met, but he was still embarrassed about his initial greeting to her.

"I'm glad you didn't." The queen grabbed her husband's arm and leaned into him affectionately. "You left a _very_ strong first impression."

Poseidon snorted, "I made a fool of myself."

"Yes, but you were a lovable fool."

The queen remembered every moment of their first encounter perfectly. She met him in the throne room with her parents and the former king and queen present, similar to how Percy would meet Lady Annabeth. Poseidon walked into their meeting with his usual confidence, but his steps faltered when he saw her. He stuttered out a standard greeting, and then stared openly at her while she curtsied. The former queen was about to scold her son for his poor manners when the prince suddenly exclaimed that Sally was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Poseidon's face turned bright red after that announcement, but his flustered behaviour stole Sally's heart.

The queen hoped that Percy and his bride would find love just as easily.

~~~ A Kingdom Divided ~~~

Percy's palms were sweating as he approached the throne room several minutes later, so he wiped them discretely on his tunic. Once they were dry, he took a deep breath and entered the room where his fiancée was waiting.

The throne room in Merchester Castle was long, but narrow. There was not much furniture inside—just three golden thrones resting on a raised platform at the far end of the room. Portraits of past monarchs hung from the walls in gold frames. Their eyes seemed to follow Percy as he walked on the thin strip of red carpet leading up to the edge of the platform, where seven people stood waiting in fine attire. Percy recognized three of them as his father, his mother, and the Duke of Attica, but the final four individuals were strangers to him. Nevertheless, they all turned to look at the prince as he approached them.

No one spoke until Percy was standing next to his father. The king then cleared his throat, signalling for the duke to begin introductions.

"Greetings, your highness." The duke bowed, "I am glad to see you in good health."

Frederick turned and gestured towards the four people on his left.

"Allow me to introduce my wife, the Duchess of Attica—" A small woman with red-highlighted hair curtseyed, "my eldest son, Matthew, the Marquess of Erudale—" a young boy who looked to be about eight years old greeted Percy next, with a bow, "—my younger son, Lord Robert Chase—" another boy, who looked identical to the last one, bowed, "and my daughter, Lady Annabeth Chase."

Percy's heart nearly skipped a beat as he looked at the blond woman curtseying before him. She was breathtaking. Between her curly blond hair, high forehead, and flawless complexion, she was the epitome of conventional beauty. Her best feature, however, was her stormy grey eyes. They drew the prince in with their intensity, distracting him from the conversation so that he almost missed his own introduction.

Poseidon seemed to notice his son's distraction, because he smothered a smile, and then cleared his throat to catch the prince's attention. When he spoke, he addressed the duke and his family, "This is my son, Prince Perseus of Merchester."

Percy collected himself in time to give a shallow bow. He glanced at the duke and bid him "greetings," then turned towards the duke's family.

"Pleased to meet you, Duchess, Lord Erudale, Lord Robert, and—" the prince paused briefly to give the final name special acknowledgment, "Lady Annabeth."

Percy flashed what he hoped was a charming smile, but Annabeth did not smile back. Her grey eyes flashed with barely controlled anger, and another emotion that Percy couldn't quite identify. The prince was so surprised that he almost took a step back. What had he done to deserve such a look?

The queen also seemed to notice Annabeth's hostility, because she placed a comforting hand on her son's left shoulder. Then, she flashed her most diplomatic smile and suggested that they all head over to the outer bailey, where the tournament was ready to begin.

"Excellent idea!" The king seconded. His next words suggested that he was unaware of the tension between Annabeth and his son, "Let's all walk a little bit ahead of the new couple, shall we? It'll give them some time to get acquainted."

The adults all nodded their agreement, so the king led his wife, the duke, the duchess, and the duke's young sons out of the throne room. Once they were gone, Percy turned to Annabeth and offered her another smile. She accepted it as coldly as she had the last one.

"Have I done something to offend you?" The prince asked, with bewilderment clear in his voice.

Annabeth merely scowled and crossed her arms. "You need to stop the engagement announcement."

"What?!" That was the last thing Percy had expected her to say. "Why?"

"Because our betrothal will become legally binding once it's been announced, so neither one of us will be able to break it without causing a scandal!"

"Why is that a problem, though? I don't _want_ to break our engagement—our wedding will improve the stability of the kingdom!"

"Well, I don't want to marry you!" A hint of desperation leaked its way into Annabeth's voice. "I highly doubt that you'd want to marry someone as contrary as me, either!"

A thought snuck its way into the back of Percy's mind—what if Annabeth was faking her earlier anger, in order to appear so unpleasant that the prince would break their engagement? The thought seemed preposterous, because any noblewoman would be eager to marry a royal, but Percy suddenly recognized the unidentified emotion hiding in Annabeth's eyes. It was fear.

"Has someone threatened you?" The prince questioned. It was the only explanation he could think of at that moment. "Did they tell you that they'd hurt you if you married me? Because if that's the case, then I can protect you."

Annabeth scoffed. She was back to acting unpleasant. "I don't scare that easily. Besides, who would have threatened me? No one else knows about our engagement yet."

Percy had forgotten about that. Even the king's closest advisors didn't know. Still, he couldn't make sense of Annabeth's behaviour.

"You claim not to scare very easily," the prince argued, "but I recognize the fear in your eyes. Tell me the real reason why you don't want to get married."

Annabeth's glare intensified. A lesser man would have shrunk back from her gaze, but Percy was brave, stubborn, and just a little foolish. He refused to back down. Eventually, Annabeth sighed and uncrossed her arms. They fell lifelessly to her sides, and the storm in her eyes abated.

"Please don't ask questions. Just tell your father that I won't be able to fulfill my wifely duties, so the engagement needs to be called off. I can't tell you any more than that."

Percy shook his head. "I'm sorry, but my father has been very clear—our marriage is necessary for the benefit of the kingdom. He's already signed the dowry agreement with your father, so really, our betrothal is already binding. The king won't break it easily."

Annabeth frowned and her eyes turned vacant. She stared off into the horizon as if she was processing a million thoughts at once. Percy thought it was mesmerizing.

Eventually, Annabeth blinked. Her eyes took on a curious gleam as she looked at the prince.

"I am barren, Prince Perseus. I could never bear you a son."

Percy paled. So that was the wifely duty she couldn't complete? Producing a royal heir was a queen's most important responsibility.

"How do you know that you're barren? Surely you've never…"

Percy trailed off, but Annabeth understood his suggestion.

"No! Certainly not! I am pure, I assure you, but I—" she faltered, "I have a condition."

The blonde's cheeks went bright red. "It relates to my womanly cycle. I never stop bleeding, so we could never consummate our marriage. I don't know if I am truly incapable of having children, but my inability to consummate a marriage means that I could never bear you an heir."

"Oh." Percy's face suddenly felt warm. "Please accept my condolences on your… condition. But," the prince swallowed the lump that had suddenly appeared in his throat, "I admit that I don't understand. Why would such a condition prevent you from consummating our marriage?"

"The blood from a woman's cycle is corrosive," Annabeth stated simply.

Percy winced and took a sudden step backwards. All thoughts of consummation fled from his mind as he subtly shifted his pelvis away from his betrothed.

"I see," the prince gulped, "and you have seen doctors about this condition?"

Annabeth nodded. "They have not been able to help."

"Why did the duke not mention this during the engagement negotiations?"

"I am not certain, but I believe that he was too eager to secure the king's favour. Our marriage would restore his honour, so he was unwilling to jeopardize the negotiations by mentioning my condition."

Percy frowned. He hadn't realized that the Duke of Attica was so dishonourable and manipulative. He would have to warn his father not to trust the newest Privy Councillor too much. Nevertheless, the king had manipulated Frederick as well. The duke didn't know that a rebellion might soon break out, or that his daughter's marriage was intended to secure his support in that rebellion. Such were the intrigues of court life.

Regardless of the duke's dishonesty, the crown still needed to secure his support. A political marriage was the only way to do so with certainty. Percy was the only royal offspring from his parent's marriage, and Annabeth was the duke's only daughter. Regardless of her medical condition, they needed to marry. They were the only match available to link the two families. Still, Percy needed to produce a royal heir. Even if an heir wasn't necessary, unconsummated marriages were unstable. They could be annulled—but maybe that was the solution!

A plan began to form in the back of Percy's mind. His marriage to Annabeth was necessary for the good of the kingdom; that much had already been established. Nevertheless, Annabeth could never produce the heir that he needed. That was also clear. At first glance, the situation seemed hopeless, but deeper analysis revealed that there was a suitable solution. They could marry, and stay married until the country was stable once more. That would secure the Duke of Attica's support in any revolts against the crown. Nevertheless, once the kingdom was stable, the duke's support would no longer be necessary. Percy could get an annulment for his marriage to Annabeth—citing their lack of consummation as justification—and then he could marry another woman, so that she could bear his children.

The plan was perfect.

"I won't ask my father to cancel our engagement because of your condition." The prince announced.

Annabeth frowned, "Did you not understand me? I cannot produce an heir."

"Of course I understood," Percy replied, "but our marriage needs to take place to end the feud between our families. Even you must admit that."

Annabeth seemed reluctant to agree, so Percy continued speaking. "I propose that we get married, but do not consummate our marriage. I don't want to incur any, uh, injuries, due to the corrosive nature of, um—" The prince broke off in the middle of his sentence, then picked up elsewhere, "We can stay married long enough to heal the rift between our families. Then, after several years have passed, I will seek an annulment due to our lack of children, and my need to produce an heir. After that, I will be free to marry another woman, and she will bear my children."

Percy did not bother telling her the reason why their families needed to reconcile. Annabeth stared at him as she analyzed the plan and tried to find its faults. Evidently, she found none, because a look of awe crossed her face when she realized its brilliance.

"That's perfect!" A smile lit up her face, making her look even more beautiful. "I agree to your plan, but with one condition."

Percy was so dazed from her smile that he agreed without thinking.

"Excellent!" Annabeth laughed, "My condition is this: we don't tell anyone else about the plan. Your father might not be pleased to hear about my condition, and my father _certainly_ wouldn't be pleased to hear you discussing an annulment. Everyone will be much happier if we keep this matter to ourselves."

Percy wasn't pleased about withholding the information from his father, but Annabeth was right. He might make a fuss about her condition. Also, it was only fair that he couldn't tell the king, because Annabeth wouldn't be telling her father either.

"There's one more thing, Prince Perseus." Annabeth chewed her bottom lip nervously, "My condition is embarrassing, so I'll ask you not to discuss it with anyone—even my father."

Percy had no problems agreeing to that; discussing such intimate matters made him uncomfortable, anyways.

"Alright, I agree to your conditions." Percy smiled at his fiancée, and this time, Annabeth smiled back. The prince then gestured to the doorway, "Now that the matter is settled, shall we join everyone else outside? The tournament should be starting soon."

~~~ A Kingdom Divided ~~~

Annabeth _almost_ felt guilty for lying to Percy as they exited the throne room together. The prince seemed like an honourable man; he did not deserve to be deceived. Nevertheless, Annabeth had no other choice. Her life was on the line. She would tell whatever lies were required, or create any "medical conditions" necessary, if it meant that she could keep her secret hidden.

Unfortunately, the prince's plan for their marriage suggested that he was smarter than he first appeared. That meant Annabeth would have to be careful around him, because if he ever discovered her deception, both she and her father would be in danger.

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 **A/N: Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed it, and please leave a review if you feel inclined to do so. I gladly accept both positive comments and constructive criticism. Flames aren't really appreciated, but I won't delete them either. My goal is to take your comments and make this story better. :)**

 **Does anyone think they know what Annabeth is hiding?**

 **As a small historical note, I thought I'd mention that people in medieval times actually believed that menstrual blood was corrosive! I giggled when I found that out, and decided that I _had_ to incorporate it into the story some way. Hopefully I didn't make any guys cringe (if there are any guys reading this, that is). Also, divorce was frowned on, but annulments were acceptable and frequently issued if consummation never occurred (sometimes kings were even able to get annulments when marriages _were_ consummated, but didn't provide children). So in that way, the plot point is solid. **

**Two more things before I let you go. One, I mentioned that the tournament would be occurring in this chapter, but the chapter seemed to take on a life of its own once I started writing. I didn't actually plan for Percy and Annabeth's first conversation to go like this, but I'm pleased with the result. It sets things up well for later in the story, and avoids the awkward consummation issue. Back then, people would've expected them to consummate the marriage on their wedding day, regardless of whether they knew each other or were attracted each other. Today, our thinking is different, and I didn't want to make readers uncomfortable, so I developed a plot point to avoid it. Hopefully the people valuing the historical accuracy of this story don't mind too much, because the justification for the delay is still accurate! Anyways, my point here is to tell you that I meant to include the tournament in this chapter, but didn't. Sorry if that disappoints you, but I promise that it WILL be featured in the next chapter.**

 **Lastly, I've updated every other day so far, but I don't know if I'll be able to keep that up. My next update will probably be on Saturday, or around then.**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I updated this chapter to fix a small mistake. If you got a notification about it, I'm sorry. You can ignore that notification and go to Chapter 9 instead (I'm posting that chapter at the same time as I edit this one). The original A/N for this chapter follows.**

 **Hey everyone! Here is the fourth chapter, as promised. It's much more action heavy than the past few chapters (especially the second half, which is in Annabeth's POV), and has a LOT of historical details involved relating to knight's armour and the joust. I tried to explain them as best as I could as they came up in the narration of the story, so this chapter might "tell" more than it should (according to the "show, don't tell" rule of writing), but it was necessary in order to make the story clear. If anyone still has questions by the end of the chapter, feel free to ask about it in a PM or review and I'll answer.**

 **Thanks to everyone who reviewed last time. They were: PrincessOfAtlantis101, ACosmos97, and GriffinGirl8655. You're awesome! :D**

 **Enjoy!**

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The outer bailey was bustling with activity when Percy and Annabeth arrived. Guests were still pouring into the courtyard from the outer gate, but the couple avoided the crowd as they approached the tiltyard, where the joust was going to be held. They passed by a number of brightly coloured pavilions on the way, but Percy led Annabeth around them. The tents were used to house surgeons and the combatants participating in the joust. The latter group could get rowdy before tournaments, so he didn't want to expose Annabeth to their crude behaviour.

Once the couple was past the pavilions, their path crossed with the crowd's. Most of the people were villagers from the castle town, so they were heading for the left side of the tiltyard, where they would stand and watch the tournament from behind a short wooden barrier. Percy and Annabeth were heading to the right, where a large grandstand built flush against the outer gate provided seating for nobles. Percy led Annabeth to the royal box in the center of the grandstand, where both of their families and the Duke of Titania were already waiting. Only two seats remained, so Percy claimed the chair next to his mother, while Annabeth sat between Percy and Kronos.

The Duke of Titania immediately engaged Annabeth in conversation, so the queen used their distraction to speak privately with her son. She leaned discretely in his direction and kept her voice low as she questioned, "Is everything alright between you?"

Percy responded in an equally soft voice, "Yes, mother. Everything is sorted now. It was just a small misunderstanding."

"Good." The queen kept her voice at a whisper to avoid drawing unwanted attention, but she glanced at Percy from the corner of her eyes. "She's a very pretty woman when she's not glaring, don't you think?"

Percy's cheeks tinged pink. "Mother!"

Sally ignored his rebuke; she continued to stare expectantly at her son until he gave in with an exasperated sigh.

"Fine! Yes, she's beautiful."

Percy didn't realize how loudly he'd spoken until his mother's eyes widened. He saw Annabeth turn to look at him in his peripheral vision, but he was too embarrassed to meet her gaze. He stood abruptly, and then stated, "I need to go change into my armour."

Percy left the royal box with a scarlet face. He passed by his parents, the duke and duchess, and the duke's giggling twins on the way. Humiliated, he hurried down the grandstand's wooden steps and walked swiftly towards the pavilions. He found his tent at the outer right edge of the cluster, less than a hundred meters from the tiltyard. It was the only tent with green and gold vertical stripes, which made it easy to identify.

Percy lifted one tent flap and ducked inside, but he glanced over his shoulder towards the grandstand as he entered. He half expected to see Annabeth staring back at him, but when he looked, she was still talking to the Duke of Titania. Her face wasn't flushed, like his was, but she was smiling too largely for someone in conversation with Kronos.

Percy groaned and let the tent flap fall back to its usual place. Not for the first time, he wished that he had better control over his mouth.

"Is everything alright, sire?" A familiar voice broke the prince out of his thoughts.

Percy turned to look at the boy who had spoken. "Everything is fine, Ethan."

Ethan frowned and looked closely at the prince, "Are you feeling ill? I heard you groan, and you look a little flushed—should I withdraw your name from the tournament?"

Percy shook his head. "No, I can compete."

"Are you sure, my lord? There is no shame in withdrawing due to an illness."

"I've already told you my answer," Percy scolded.

Ethan apologized profusely for his impertinence, but the prince just waved him off. "It's fine. Just ready my armour so I can get dressed."

"I've already prepared it, my lord."

Ethan gestured to a long table in the center of the otherwise empty pavilion. Percy moved to stand beside the table when he realized that it held his jousting armour. The pieces were carefully arranged in the order he would need them, beginning with his sabatons on the left, and ending with his helm on the right.

"Excellent!" Percy smiled at his squire. "Good work, Ethan. Now help me get dressed."

Ethan smiled at the praise as he moved to stand next to Percy. He grabbed the sabatons from the left side of the table, then knelt so that he could fit the solid metal boots over Percy's leather moccasins. As soon as the sabatons were secure, he stood, grabbed the next piece of plate armour, and returned to his kneeling position. He fastened the smooth metal pieces, called greaves, to Percy's lower legs so that they covered the prince's ankles and calves. After that, Ethan was able to stand for the rest of his task. He continued to dress the prince from the bottom up—after the greaves came the cuisses to protect Percy's knees and thighs, and the gambeson came after that. The gambeson was a thick leather jacket used for padding underneath the armour on Percy's torso and arms. It helped absorb the shock of any hits, and stopped the prince's armour from chaffing his skin.

Once the gambeson was secure, Ethan helped Percy into a chain mail haubergeon, which covered the gambeson for extra protection. He also placed a gorget—a solid metal collar—around Percy's neck, and then he added the prince's breastplate and backplate. Ethan continued to dress the prince by attaching faulds to the bottom of his breastplate, so that four overlapping metal bands covered Percy's hips and lower back. Then the squire finished his work with the torso equipment by attaching tassets to the faulds, so that thick metal plates covered the prince's upper legs for extra protection.

Once the tassets were properly adjusted, Ethan moved on to Percy's arms. He placed spaulders over Percy's shoulders, vambraces on his arms, circular besagews to cover his armpits, and gauntlets to protect the prince's hands and forearms. Finally, the squire reached for Percy's surcoat—a blue and green robe emblazoned with a single golden trident in the front, which would help distinguish the prince from other armoured knights in the joust. Ethan placed the surcoat over Percy's armour and secured it to the prince's waist with a leather belt. After cinching the belt, he placed a chainmail coif over Percy's neck and stepped back.

"All done, sire."

Percy nodded his acknowledgement, then reached for his shield and the bascinet-style helmet still resting on the table.

"Thank you, Ethan." The prince paused to adjust the chainmail coif around his neck, then continued, "Can you dress Blackjack in his armour as well, and then go through the warm-ups with him? I'd do it myself, but my father will be making an announcement soon, and I should be in the grandstand with him."

"Of course, my lord. I'll see to him immediately."

True to his word, the boy left Percy's tent quickly. The prince departed shortly after, carrying his helmet and shield with him as he walked back to the grandstand, then climbed the stairs up to the royal box. Shuffling past the duke's sons, the duke and duchess, and the king and queen was much harder in his bulky armour, but he managed to do so without bumping into any of them. He lowered himself into his seat slowly, and then glanced around at his surroundings.

Flags and colourful banners bedecked the tiltyard in front of him. Three wooden barriers ran the length of the field—two "lists" at the outer edges to keep spectators off the tiltyard, and one "tilt" in the middle to separate the knights when they jousted. A large crowd of commoners was sitting on the ground behind the farthest list as people waited for the tournament to begin. A few small children were running around the crowd around and laughing, which seemed to amuse some of the nearby adults, but annoy others. Percy just grinned at their behaviour; he, too, had been a mischievous child, so he knew how much fun they were having.

The sound of trumpets broke Percy out of his reverie. He noticed four heralds standing in their brightly coloured liveries at each of the corners of the tiltyard. Two more stood at either end of the royal box in the grandstand, and in the judges' box immediately overhead. All eight heralds were playing a tune on their trumpets to catch the people's attention. They were successful, because the crowd went quiet and the rowdy children quickly returned to their seats. By the time that Poseidon stood to deliver his customary opening speech, the spectators were so quiet that Percy could hear birds chirping in the distance.

"WELCOME!" Poseidon shouted so that everyone could hear, "I welcome everyone here to this spring tournament, where the best knights in our kingdom will compete in the joust! But before the festivities begin, I have an announcement to make."

Poseidon paused and swept his gaze across the crowds on both sides of the tiltyard. The people seemed to be hanging onto his every word, wondering what the king would say next. Poseidon did not wait long to satisfy their curiosity.

"I am pleased to announce the betrothal of my son, Prince Perseus, to the Duke of Attica's daughter, Lady Annabeth Chase." The king turned to look at his son and future daughter-in-law, "Rise, so the people may see you."

Percy and Annabeth stood as commanded. Percy took an additional step forward to the edge of the box, so that the people could see him more clearly, and vice versa. Annabeth only hesitated for a second before joining him, and once they were standing side by side, the king's announcement seemed to sink in for the people. The crowd, which was in an excitable mood because of the tournament, exploded with positive energy. Commoners and noblemen alike began to cheer so loudly that the grandstand started to shake. That quietened some of the ladies, who glanced nervously at the wood beneath their feet, but a full minute passed before the rest of the crowd's cheers died down. Even then, the sounds of excited chatter drifted across the tiltyard.

When the king raised his right hand in a bid for silence, however, everyone immediately heeded his request.

"The couple thanks you for your excitement and well-wishes. They will be married in forty days at the castle chapel, but that is a celebration for another day! For now, we rejoice together at the good news of their engagement. Let every knight here dedicate his performance to their honour. I will award the victor with a golden chalice, inlaid with sapphires, rubies, and other precious gems."

A few spectators gasped at their king's generosity. Such a cup was worth double a knight's yearly income, if not more!

Poseidon didn't even acknowledge their astonishment as he concluded his brief speech. "Now, _let the festivities begin_!"

The crowd responded to Poseidon's speech with deafening cheers. Looking at the people then, Percy never would have guessed that Merchester was on the verge of rebellion; the spectators' eyes were shining with admiration for their king. Even Poseidon seemed caught up in the euphoria. He turned towards Percy and Annabeth with a large smile on his face, then winked obviously at them before returning to his seat.

Annabeth took that as her cue to do the same. Percy almost joined her, but he changed his mind and left the royal box instead. Now that the announcement had been made, the opening ceremony would begin. He needed to join the other knights before the processional started.

~~~ A Kingdom Divided ~~~

Annabeth watched Percy leave. The prince's ornate jousting armour seemed to slow him down, but his movements were otherwise fluid. They lacked the awkwardness that plagued most armoured knights. In fact, the prince seemed to move more confidently when he was in his armour than when he was without it. He reminded her of Luke, in that regard.

The heralds began to play another short tune on their trumpets, which drew Annabeth's attention away from Prince Perseus. She directed her focus towards the judges' box, instead, because that was where the Grand Marshall would open the ceremony by reading the rules for the joust. The judges' box was directly above where the royals sat with their guests of honour, so Annabeth couldn't actually see the Grand Marshall stand as the trumpet songs subsided, but she heard his loud voice call out to the people.

"Greetings, lords and ladies! Forty-six knights have answered the call to compete in this tournament. They have all agreed to adhere to the rules of the joust à plaissance. Those rules are as follows: first, that the knights who joust must run four courses at most, with three lances, and no more. If in these four courses one knight should hit the other, splintering his lance, and the knight upon whom that lance splintered did not break his own lance by striking his opponent, he shall be vanquished. Furthermore, if one knight splinters two lances and the other only one, the winner shall be the knight who breaks two lances. But if the knight who only splintered one lance knocks off his opponent's helm with the same blow, a tie shall be declared between him and the knight who splintered the two lances."

Annabeth leaned forward in her seat as the Grand Marshall continued, "Thirdly, if a knight shatters two lances by striking his opponent, and the knight who has been struck knocks him off his horse, even though he did not splinter his lance, a tie shall be declared between him and the knight who splintered the lances. Furthermore, if one knight knocks down both his opponent and his horse, and the other knocks down the knight but not his horse, then the knight whose horse fell with him shall be the winner, because the fault in this case was the horse's and not the rider's. And in the case of the knight who fell but whose horse did not, the fault rests with the knight and not with the horse. Furthermore, lance staves shall not be judged properly broken if they are broken crosswise, but only if they break after striking with the point."

The Grand Marshall paused for a moment, and Annabeth thought she heard a man's quick intake of breath before the announcement continued, "The sixth rule declares that, if in the four courses each knight splinters two staves, or one each, or they each strike in the same place, a tie will be declared between them. And if in the four courses they never manage to hit each other at all, let the judgement be that they jousted poorly. Finally, if any knight should drop his lance whilst charging, without ever coming to blows, his opponent should raise his lance and not strike him, for it would be unchivalrous to strike an opponent who had no lance."

Annabeth frowned as she tried to understand the Grand Marshall's words. She had only attended pas d'armes style jousts before, and the rules seemed very different. Nevertheless, if she understood the Grand Marshall correctly, then the joust a plaissance rules were simple: the participants received three lances to use against each other in a match, but to keep the tournament from dragging on too long, each match was limited to four runs. The knights' goal was to break the lance on their opponent. If they broke their lance on their opponent's body or shield, they received one point. If they managed to remove their opponent's helmet, they received two points, and if they unhorsed their opponent, they received three points. Whichever knight amassed more points won the match. He was permitted to advance in the tournament, but the knight who lost was eliminated.

The Grand Marshall finished speaking while Annabeth revised the rules in her mind. "With the rules thus stated, the processional shall begin. May the best knight win."

The Grand Marshall grew silent after that, so Annabeth turned her attention to the end of the tiltyard, where a large group of knights were standing with their horses. Both they, and the animals they rode, were dressed in metal armour and surcoats. Each knight was holding a shield in their left hand, and in their right hand, they held a wooden pole with their house's flag on top.

Annabeth watched as one knight, on the far right side of the front row, hefted his family flag high and urged his horse forward to open the processional. A herald introduced him to the crowd, but the man needn't have bothered. Everyone recognized the royal trident on the knight's green flag, so they knew that it was Prince Perseus.

The crowd cheered so loudly for the prince that Annabeth couldn't hear his full introduction. She simply watched as he circled the tiltyard with his flag held high, then returned to his original position beside the other knights. The next knight urged his mount forward and repeated Percy's actions. Eventually, the other the forty-four knights competing in the joust circled the tiltyard as well. Her friend, Luke, was the last to ride forward, and she cheered loudly for him. He returned to his place at the end of the line, then Percy and the second knight from the processional rode forward.

They moved into their positions for the joust. Percy was on the left side of the tilt, closer to the commoners, so the other knight rode to the far end of the right side. He turned to face Percy, then both knights waved over their squires. They no longer needed their family flags, because their surcoats and shields could still identify them, so Percy and the other knight exchanged their flags for lances. They held the lances straight upwards in their right hands while waiting for the match to begin.

They did not have to wait long, however, until the heralds in the judges' box blew their trumpets, which signalled for the men to begin. Both knights responded immediately. They spurred their horses into a canter, then gently lowered and aimed their lances. They met in the middle of the tiltyard, and both men's lances shattered on the other's breastplate. They returned to the starting positions, but this time, Percy was on the right of the tilt while the other knight was on the left. Their squires quickly handed them new lances, then removed the pieces of their broken lances from the tiltyard.

As soon as the squires were out of the knights' paths, the heralds signalled for them to ride again. They did so, but this time, when they met, Percy's opponent missed while the prince shattered his lance on the other man's helmet. That blow wasn't enough to knock the knight's helmet off, but it drew loud cheers from the crowd.

Annabeth leaned forward in her seat as the opponents returned to their original positions on the field. She watched as Percy's squire cleaned up the broken lance bits from the tiltyard, then handed the prince his final lance. If Percy broke the lance during the next round, and managed to stay on his horse, then he would win the match.

The heralds blew another note on their trumpets, and before Annabeth could even blink, the knights were moving towards each other again. They aimed their lances carefully as they approached, and each managed to break a lance on the other's shield. That meant Percy had won the match!

Several audience members jumped to their feet as they cheered. The king remained seated, but he applauded loudly for his son while Percy returned to the ranks of knights at the edge of the field. The other knight also left the tiltyard, but he joined the nobles in the grandstand so he could watch the rest of the festivities in comfort.

After the tiltyard was cleared of the debris from the previous run, the next two knights rode forward. They had to tilt for all four runs, because two of the rounds resulted in both knights delivering glancing blows and riding away with their lances intact. The losing knight from that match also chose to join the nobles in the grandstand after he was eliminated, but the knight from the third match returned to his pavilion with an injury. The next several matches seemed to pass in a blur for Annabeth—although she was very pleased when Luke unhorsed his opponent in the first run of his match, and then went on to win the match.

Soon, half of the original forty-six knights were eliminated. Percy rode forward for his second match, which he won in the first three rounds, again. He returned to his place just as the next two knights rode forward, and the tournament suffered its first casualty in that match. The crowd grew somber while the dead knight was carried off the yard and his body returned to his pavilion, but the people were back to cheering moments later.

Several more hours of jousting passed, and as much as Annabeth enjoyed watching the sport, she was beginning to grow weary. Her interest was aroused, however, when she realized that only two knights were left. They advanced to their positions on the tiltyard, and when Annabeth looked between them, uncertainty pooled in her stomach. Who was she supposed to cheer for—Percy, as her betrothed, or her childhood friend, Luke Castellan?

* * *

 **A/N: I have to leave in 5 minutes so I'll make this note fast. I hope you enjoyed the joust! It was a lot of fun, but a lot of effort, to write.**

 **I admit that this wasn't my best chapter, but I promised that I would update today and I didn't want to break that promise. If I have time when the story is finished, I'll come back and fix it up a bit.**

 **Actually, there's one more thing I want to say. The rules I published for the joust a plaissance are actually the official jousting rules published by King Alfonso XI of Castile in 1330. I copied it almost word for word from his official statue, but I did change a few words to make it more readable. I also added a quick "explanation" afterwards (in Annabeth's train of thought) to summarize the points and clarify anything that might not have been clear in the official rules stated by the Grand Marshall. If you want to see the official statute by King Alfonso XI, you can go to** 2015/01/07/medieval-rules-jousting/ .

 **Thanks for reading!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey everyone! Here's the fifth chapter. Sorry the updates have slowed down a bit (still less than a week, though), but my chapters are longer than the ones I see in most stories, so they take longer to write. This one is the longest one yet, with over 5,000 words!**

 **As always, I'd like to thank everyone who followed or favourited this story, and especially the three people who reviewed: ACosmos97, thundeRose, and WaterWarrior60.**

 **There are just two terms you should be familiar with before reading the chapter below. The first is "dais," which is a raised platform at the end of the Great Hall, where the lord and lady of the manor (king and queen, in this case) sit with their guests of honour during feasts. The raised platform in the throne room (where the throne sits) is also called a dais. The second term you need to know is "subtlety," which was an elaborate confection served at medieval feasts. They were commonly sugar sculptures that were first used as centerpieces, and then eaten once the course was finished.  
**

 **That's all for now. I hope you enjoy!**

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Percy was bone-tired by the time that he moved into position for the final match of the joust. His shoulders were sore from bearing the weight of his torso armour, and his lance arm was aching from all the jolts it had suffered that day. Nevertheless, a small part of him was disappointed that the joust would be over so soon. He found few things more exhilarating than tilting against a worthy opponent while spectators cheered for their favourite, and the crowd that day was particularly lively. Commoners kept jostling one another behind the left list as they fought for the best view of the tiltyard, and the nobles were sitting on the edge of their seats in the grandstand. Even the king and queen were more animated than normal—announcing Percy's engagement seemed to have put them in unusually high spirits.

Annabeth was the only person that Percy saw with a serious expression on her face. She leaned forward in her seat every time the prince rode through a match, but her grey eyes reflected interest, rather than excitement. They seemed to analyze his every move, as if she could learn about his character by the way he held his lance. The prince could only hope that her conclusions were favourable. He'd defeated each of his opponents with ease, _and_ he'd avoided the indignity of being unhorsed. Such feats should've secured her affection— _all_ ladies were impressed by prowess in combat—but Annabeth wasn't looking at him with any semblance of warmth. The expression on her face made him feel more like a puzzle that needed to be solved, than a man to be treasured or a knight to be awed by. Percy only had one more match to change that.

Lord Luke Castellan wouldn't make winning easy, but that was good—a challenging opponent would make Percy's victory seem even more impressive. The prince smirked beneath his helm. He would make the last match one to remember.

A herald blew his trumpet then, signalling for the joust to begin. Percy urged Blackjack into a canter and slowly tilted his lance forward. He stopped when it was almost horizontal with the ground, then shifted it slightly to the left, so that it crossed over the tilt barrier. Luke was twenty feet away, but the distance between them was closing fast, so Percy aimed his lance and braced himself for impact. His whole body jerked a moment later, when his lance made contact with Luke's helmet and broke. At the same time, Luke's lance hit the prince's helm. The blow was so fierce that Percy's head snapped back to an uncomfortable angle and his helmet toppled off. Several crowd members gasped—Percy thought he heard his mother among them—but most just cheered Luke on for a job well done. Percy's royalty didn't matter to them in that regard; tournament spectators supported the best knight competing, not the highest ranking one.

Percy barely managed to recover his seat without falling. Once he was sitting straight in the saddle, however, he slowly raised the stub of his lance to an upright position and rode to the end of the tilt. Ethan joined him there several minutes later, carrying a new lance and the prince's helmet.

"Are you alright, sire?" Ethan asked, "Lord Luke's lance struck you hard."

"Yes, I'm aware," Percy retorted. The aching in his neck wouldn't let him forget.

Rather than respond to his master's sarcasm, Ethan handed the prince his helm. Percy slipped the bascinet over his neck, then blinked as his eyes adjusted to the reduced field of vision. He could barely see Ethan through the thin opening in his visor, but he managed to exchange his broken lance for the whole one in Ethan's hands.

As soon as the new lance was in Percy's hand, Ethan left the tiltyard so that the second round of the match could begin. Percy signalled to the herald that he was ready, then turned to look at his opponent. The herald blew his trumpet shortly after, so both knights tilted their lances and charged. The prince aimed for his opponent's torso, but Luke aimed for Percy's head. Their horses crossed the tiltyard at a full gallop, so Percy braced himself for a powerful collision with Luke's lance.

Nevertheless, nothing could have prepared the prince for what was about to happen. He didn't even realize the danger that he was in until it was too late. The tip of Luke's lance was poised to pass through the slit in Percy's visor. That blow would kill the prince, whether the lance shattered or not, but it was approaching too fast for Percy to avoid.

The spectators seemed to realize Percy's predicament at the same time as the prince, because they all gasped in unison. A single female voice called out his name from the grandstand.

" _Percy!"_

Guilt rolled over the dark-haired knight as he processed the anguish in his mother's voice. He wished she didn't have to see this, but there was nothing he could do. Luke's lance was less than two meters away, and their horses were running at top speed. The prince's fate was decided.

Apparently, Blackjack didn't get that message. He reared at the sound of the queen's voice, kicking his front legs up into the air while releasing a high-pitched neigh. That movement pushed Percy backwards and out of the trajectory of Luke's lance, which pierced through the empty space between Percy and his mount. The lance broke crosswise when Percy leaned towards Blackjack so that he wouldn't lose his seat, but it didn't do any damage to the prince. As a crosswise break, it didn't even count for points.

Percy's hit _did_ count. Although the prince had initially aimed for Luke's torso, his lance point was forced upwards when Blackjack reared. It caught the edge of Luke's helm and shattered, but not before knocking the helmet off.

Everyone in the lists—even Luke's father, Lord Hermes—cheered loudly for the prince in the seconds following the knights' confrontation. Percy wasn't able to acknowledge their excitement, because he was clinging onto Blackjack so that he wouldn't fall off while the horse continued to rear, but that didn't deter the spectators. They continued to applaud the prince until long after Blackjack was under control. By the time the excitement finally died down, both Percy and Luke were ready to begin the third run of their match. Percy was shaking with leftover adrenaline, so the lance wobbled slightly in his right hand as he waited for the herald's signal. When the trumpet call came, however, the tremor disappeared. His training took over and instilled him with confidence as he rode forward while tilting his lance.

The prince maintained a tight grip on his weapon and kept his shoulder firm as Luke approached. He thrusted the lance forward just before they met to give it extra power, and that succeeded in breaking the lance on Luke's torso. A split second later, Luke shattered his lance on Percy's shoulder. The prince jerked backward from that strike, but both he and Luke managed to remain in their saddles. They rode to the end of the tilt while the crowd erupted into cheers and applause. The match was over; Percy had won by a single point.

Ethan ran to greet Percy at the edge of the field. "Congratulations, sire! Well jousted!"

The prince accepted his squire's praise, and the crowd's acclamation, by humbly dipping his head. His uninjured competitors returned to the tiltyard for the closing ceremony, so Percy passed Ethan his shield and lance, and then he rode over to join them. He dismounted Blackjack in the middle of the throng, but his feet had barely touched the ground before a fellow knight pulled him into an embrace. Percy returned the gesture as a symbol of their knightly companionship, so that everyone present would know that the tournament had not divided them. He embraced each of his competitors in turn, ending with Luke, who did not hesitate to congratulate the prince on his victory.

"I have not lost a tournament in years," the blond knight admitted. He clapped Percy roughly on the back before adding, "It was an honour to tilt against you, your highness. I have never met a finer opponent."

"Nor have I," the prince replied.

Luke accepted the compliment with a humble dip of his head. When he spoke again, he was smiling, "Please accept my congratulations on your engagement, as well. Lady Annabeth is a wonderful woman; she will make an excellent bride."

Percy's eyebrows rose at the insinuation that Luke knew Annabeth personally. He opened his mouth to ask how they met, but a trumpet call interrupted him as the heralds signalled for silence.

The prince turned reluctantly with the other knights as they directed their attention to the grandstand. The heralds played for another few seconds, then lowered their trumpets as the king stepped forward.

"Noble knights, you have all jousted well! Take heart, for there is no dishonour in your defeat." Poseidon's twinkling green eyes slid towards Percy, "Yet, there is great honour in one man's victory. Prince Perseus, step forward."

Percy took a single step towards the grandstand. As soon as he stood still, the king continued his speech, "I declare you, Prince Perseus, Champion of the spring tournament!"

Thunderous applause filled the tiltyard in reaction to the king's announcement. Percy was pleased to see Annabeth cheering with the crowd—that was the first sign of enthusiasm that she'd shown all day. He was glad to have it directed at him.

Eventually, the king raised his hand for silence and the people obeyed.

"You performed well today, Prince Perseus. You will be rewarded, as promised, at tonight's banquet. Until then, you and the other knights may return to the pavilions for rest."

Neither Percy nor his competitors needed to be told twice. They accepted the king's dismissal with glee and walked back to their tents while Poseidon addressed the crowd.

~~~ A Kingdom Divided ~~~

When Percy approached the Great Hall two hours later, he found his parents, Lady Annabeth, and Annabeth's family waiting for him outside the entrance. The king greeted him with a hearty slap on the back.

"Well done today, Son! You were the finest knight on the field."

Percy's knightly training demanded that he accept the compliment with humility, but pride bubbled in his chest. "Thank you, Father."

The queen suddenly stepped forward and engulfed her son in a hug. Percy was so surprised that he stood there, frozen, until his mother placed one hand on the back of his head and pushed it downwards so that she could whisper in his ear, "I thought I had lost you."

The queen's voice broke, "I have never been more terrified, Perseus."

A fresh wave of guilt rolled over Percy. He'd already recovered from the fright of his incident with Luke, but it was obvious that his mother had not.

The prince raised his arms and slowly wrapped them around his mother. Heat rushed to his face as he thought of the guests in their presence, but he pulled his mother closer all the same.

"I'm sorry," he whispered in her ear, "but I'm fine now, I promise."

Sally nodded, but she clung to him for several more moments before finally letting go. By the time she finally stepped back, Percy's face was bright red. The Duke of Attica and his wife had politely averted their gaze from the mother-son embrace, but their twins were staring at Percy in shock and amusement. They would never allow _their_ mother to embrace _them_ in public.

The king cleared his throat.

"I believe that the banquet is ready to begin."

Percy flashed his father a grateful look for changing the topic. The king acknowledged him with a brief nod, then he turned towards his wife and offered her an arm. The queen took it gladly. She gave Percy an apologetic smile, then she and her husband turned to face the large wooden door leading to the Great Hall. The Duke of Attica offered the Duchess his arm, then he guided her to stand six feet behind the king and queen. Percy wondered at the large gap between the couples, but then he realized that the space was meant for him. He glanced awkwardly at Lady Annabeth and noticed that she was staring back at him with a peculiar expression on her face.

The prince, thinking that she wanted him to escort her, offered Annabeth an arm. She took it, but she continued to glance at Percy every few seconds as he led her to stand behind his parents. The prince wanted to ask Annabeth why she was staring, but two armoured guards opened the doors to the Great Hall before he could do so. The duke's twins fell into line behind their parents just as the king and queen stepped forward. Trumpets announced their arrival as the royal processional entered the Great Hall, where two long tables were covered in linen cloths and flanked by benches full of guests.

The guests all stood to greet their king, but Poseidon kept his head forward as he led the processional down the length of the room. The trumpets continued to play until he and the rest of the processional climbed the dais at the end of the hall and sat down at the High Table situated there. With the royal family and their guests of honour thus seated, the rest of the guests returned to their benches.

The room fell silent as the castle chaplain stepped forward. He crossed himself, and then led the assembly in grace. "Bless us, O Lord, and these, Thy gifts, which we are about to receive through Thy bounty. Through Christ, our Lord. Amen."

"Amen." The assembly echoed.

Every person present crossed themselves as the priest returned to his seat. Then new trumpet calls signalled the beginning of the feast. The doors to the Great Hall burst open, and servants swept into the room carrying large pitchers of water, bowls, and linen towels, which they used to help the guests wash and dry their hands.

As soon as the last guest's hands were clean, the servants carried the towels and bowls of water away. Kitchen squires passed them as they left, with the former carrying golden platters of food into the Great Hall. They served the king first, presenting him with stew, venison in a dish of boiled wheat, a boar's head, boiled meat, roasted swan, peas, pike, roasted fat capons, and two subtleties for the first course. Poseidon selected small portions of each dish, then signalled for the squires to serve the rest of his table. Percy skipped the fat capons and peas, but he accepted a small portion of everything else. Annabeth, who sat next to him, chose to eat everything but the boar's head.

Once the high table was served, the squires moved on to the lower tables. Percy watched them serve the Duke of Titania and his wife at the top of the table on his right. As was customary for guests at the lower table, the couple shared a plate and goblet. Percy glanced down at the plate and cup in front of him. He was grateful to have his own set of each, but—he glanced over at Annabeth—a small part of him wouldn't have minded sharing, either.

Annabeth seemed to notice him staring at her, because she lifted her eyes to meet his gaze. Unlike the first time they met, there was no hostility in her expression, only curiosity. "Is there something you needed, Prince Perseus?"

Percy was about to shake his head when he thought the better of it.

"Actually, there is something I'd like to ask you."

Annabeth nodded to give her permission, so Percy seized the chance to ask her about his conversation with Luke, "I was speaking with Lord Luke Castellan earlier, just after our joust. His words seemed to suggest that he knew you."

A curious gleam entered Annabeth's eyes, "What did he say, exactly?"

Percy hesitated, then stated honestly, "He said that you were a wonderful woman, and that you will make an excellent bride."

Annabeth flushed, but a happy smile spread across her face. The sight was beautiful, yet, somehow, it didn't make Percy happy.

"How kind of him." Annabeth's eyes took on a faraway look as she picked up a slice of roasted swan and popped it into her mouth. She chewed for a few seconds, then seemed to realize that Percy was still looking at her. She swallowed before answering his question, "Yes, Lord Luke and I know each other well. He completed his knightly training at my father's house."

"I see." Percy ripped off a piece of his pike, "Did you grow close while he stayed with you?"

"Very close." Annabeth confirmed. She seemed oblivious to the frown on Percy's face. "He is my closest friend."

Percy didn't respond. He ended the conversation with a curt nod; he didn't want to hear anything else about Luke's "friendship" with his betrothed. Nevertheless, his resolve slipped when Annabeth muttered, "He's my only friend, actually."

The prince could sympathise with that sentiment. He was surrounded by servants, knights, and nobles at the castle, but he wouldn't call any of them friends. The only people he trusted unconditionally were his parents and the Lord Contstable, Chiron, but the latter was more like a mentor than a friend. Court life could be lonely, even when there were plenty of people around.

"Maybe," the prince suggested delicately, as if he were afraid of how Annabeth would respond, "one day, you and I may be great friends."

Annabeth looked at her betrothed in surprise, but a small smile crossed her face shortly after. "I would like that, Prince Perseus."

Percy returned her smile with one of his own. He felt strangely intimate towards the lady before him, despite having known her for less than a day. Perhaps it was her forthrightness. Court life was always full of intrigue, so it was nice to converse with someone who held no secrets. Lady Annabeth's fright and anger upon meeting him, her unguarded interest during the joust, and her frank admission of loneliness all gave the prince insight into her life and character. Percy felt like he already knew her better than he knew some of his father's closest advisers, whom he had been acquainted with for years, yet knew nothing about.

The prince returned to his supper with a thoughtful frown on his face. He and Lady Annabeth could never be intimate together as husband and wife, due to her condition. However, they would have to spend several years living together until Percy secured an annulment. There was no reason why they _couldn't_ be friends during that time. It would ease both of their loneliness, and it would help the ruse of their marriage if they appeared emotionally intimate. Nevertheless, a nagging feeling in his gut warned the prince not to befriend his betrothed. He wished he could understand why. Had his knowledge of the intrigues at court made him so paranoid that he now saw danger where none could be found? Or was Lady Annabeth more sinister than she appeared?

The latter thought seemed almost sinful when Percy looked at his fiancée. Her blonde hair glowed like a golden halo in the candle light, and a warm smile graced her lips. She appeared so innocent that he felt guilty for doubting her honesty, especially when she had been so forthright with her emotions thus far.

The prince's thoughts were interrupted when more servants entered the Great Hall. They carried new linen towels and bowls of water, which they passed around each table just like they had the last set. Kitchen squires cleared the dishes while the nobles washed their hands, then, once everyone was clean again, they brought in the second course. It consisted of white pudding, jellied meat, roast pork, fish, tarts, meat pies, rabbit, cranes, pheasants, herons, peacocks, fish, and one subtlety. Each guest helped himself, taking small portions of every dish he desired in order to appreciate their variety.

Percy remained quiet throughout most of the second course, but he did thank his father when the king offered him salt. Other than that, he focused on savouring the food in front of him and watching the entertainers that his father had hired. He laughed at the jester's antics, gaped at the juggler's talents, and listened to the minstrels sing their songs. The entire course passed too quickly for his liking, but new bowls and towels were soon passed out to end the second course. The servants also brought new dishes, including broth, spiced pudding of pork, dried fruits and eggs in a sauce of almond milk, roasted venison, rabbits, pigeons, small herons, quails, larks, roasted perch, roasted peacocks, meat puff pastries, a rice dish, fritters, and two subtleties. Percy asked the servants to serve him a small portion of each dish when they offered, then he returned to eating and enjoying the music.

By the time he cleared his plate, the prince was stuffed. He accepted the last bowl of water gratefully when the servants offered it, dried his hands on the linen table, and sat back in his chair as he waited for the priest to step forward.

Even the chaplain seemed to favour his stomach a little when he stood for the closing prayer. The old man crossed himself with the rest of the assembly, then began to speak. "We give Thee thanks, Almighty God, for all Thy benefits, and for the poor souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, may they rest in peace. Amen."

"Amen," the guests echoed, while crossing themselves once more. Then they stood so that their tables could be cleared and the Great Hall prepared for dancing.

Percy felt suddenly fortunate for his seat at the High Table, because he did not have to move his extended stomach elsewhere. The High Table on the dais would remain where it was.

Several minutes passed before the lower tables were cleared. As soon as the benches were also removed, the king stood from his chair and walked to the front of the High Table. The chatter in the Great Hall slowly grew softer until the entire room was quiet. The people looked expectantly at their king, who broke the silence with two short words.

"Knights, assemble!"

Immediately, the knights who participated in the joust stepped forward from the crowd. They formed two lines in the center of the Great Hall, facing their king. Percy hurried over to join them, bringing their number up to forty-two. Only four of the original knights were missing—three who had died in the joust, and one who was grievously injured.

The king examined all the knights assembled before him. His green eyes gleamed with pride as he addressed them, "Noble knights, you all performed well today. Nevertheless, there can only be _one_ best knight. I present him to you now—Prince Perseus, Champion of the Tournament, step forward to receive your prize."

Percy moved forward until he was standing at the bottom of the dais, immediately before the king.

Poseidon signalled for a servant, and a young boy dressed in a page's uniform stepped forward. His right hand held the tournament prize, resting on a velvet cushion and surrounded by a crown of daisies. He stopped next to the king, who turned, plucked the golden chalice from the cushion, and then turned back to the prince.

Percy kneeled before his father with his head bowed as a sign of humility, and his hands raised in petition. Poseidon placed the golden chalice in his outstretched hands.

"Stand, Prince Perseus, and accept your well-won prize."

The prince stood as ordered, with the chalice in his hands. He thanked the king for his generosity, then waited patiently as Poseidon began to speak once more.

"As tournament champion, this prize is your right. You may also choose one lady from among the crowd, and award her Queen of Beauty with this—" Poseidon plucked the crown of daisies from the velvet cushion and offered it to Percy, "crown. Then you may open the dance together."

Percy accepted the crown from his father's hands. He did not hesitate before climbing the dais, placing his chalice on the table, and presenting Lady Annabeth with the crown. It was proper for him to do so, because they were betrothed, but he also found the title appropriate for her.

"I, Prince Perseus, crown you, Lady Annabeth Chase, Queen of Beauty." Percy recited while placing the crown on her head. Then he offered her a hand, "Will you dance with me?"

Annabeth, who blushed furiously the moment the daisies touched her hair, rose from her chair and nodded. Both she and Percy were smiling as he led her to the center of the Great Hall, where they began to dance the Trotto.

~~~ A Kingdom Divided ~~~

Annabeth's mind whirled as Percy stumbled through the first few steps of the Trotto. Who was this man, who jousted with the poise of a natural-born knight, yet danced with the grace of a toddler? Who offered friendship, but did not demand love, when betrothed to a woman he believed was barren? Who laid his pride aside in a considerate gesture to comfort his mother with a public embrace?

Annabeth did not know her betrothed very well, but based on his behaviour that day, she was beginning to think that she might like to. As long as the prince did not try to consummate their union, being married to him could be pleasant. At the very least, she would finally escape the horrid situation at her father's house.

* * *

 **A/N: So that's the end of the tournament and banquet! I ended this chapter a little abruptly, but I plan to include another banquet in two chapters or so (at the Percabeth wedding), so I wanted to keep some original content for that banquet.**

 **I admit I'm struggling to set a good pace for Percabeth. I don't want to rush their relationship, because I think that feelings are more meaningful when they develop gradually over time rather than immediately due to lust. Percy already thinks Annabeth is pretty in this story, but I want their relationship to be based on more than just looks. At this point, they've only known each other for a day, so they don't have a great grasp on the other's personality yet. Obviously, I'm not going to have them fall in love before they even know each other properly. N** **evertheless, they are such a perfect match that I think they would "click" no matter what age they lived in. That's why they've both expressed interest in the other so far. Annabeth is intrigued and confused by Percy because he's different from any other man she's ever known, and Percy feels a strange connection with Annabeth that he just can't explain. Their relationship will develop further from there.**

 **Lastly, I realize that I made a small mistake in a previous chapter. I'm still pretty new to fanfiction, so could anyone tell me if there's a way for me to fix it without completely replacing the chapter? If I do replace the chapter, will I lose the reviews I received on that chapter, and accidentally send out a chapter alert to my readers? I don't want to do that either.**

 **Anyways, thanks for reading and please review! For those of you who are interested, I have posted a few relevant historical facts below. For those of you who aren't interested, feel free to skip the rest of this author's note.**

 **Interesting historical facts: (1) The menu included for the feast in this story was the REAL menu used at a banquet held by the English King Richard II in 1397, to celebrate his marriage to Isabella of France in 1936. (2)** **People in Medieval Europe didn't eat with forks. They used their hands (except when eating soup, which they used spoons for). They were also expected to bring their own cutlery and cups, and to share them with one other person. As mentioned in the story, there was one exception, and that was for the guests of honour at the High Table. The lord of the manor provided the guests of honour with their own set of cutlery and cups, and they didn't have to share. (3) Medieval hygiene practices were better than most people believe. They bathed more than just once or twice a year, and they washed their hands, faces, and feet every day. They also washed their hands before and after dinner, and between courses.** **(4) Jousting was an extremely dangerous sport. Many knights died at tournaments, even with precautions set in place. Even royals weren't immune. King Henry II of France died in a jousting accident in 1559. He was killed when a lance shattered on his helm, and a splinter entered through his visor and pierced his eye. Basically, he died in the same kind of accident that Percy narrowly avoided. (5) REAL tournaments would have lasted several days, with a feast each night, but I condensed it all down to one so that this part of the story doesn't drag on too long. Also, early tournaments were more heavily focused on the melee, but that aspect declined in importance and virtually disappeared in later tournaments, which is why I haven't included one here.**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Here's the next chapter! It's another long one, so I hope you enjoy it.**

 **Also, I'd like to Fanfic queen (guest) for answering my question about editing chapters, and a special thank you to the three people who reviewed the last chapter: ResidentOfCabin6, Jedi1, and Bolle Accedentali.**

 **The only terms you need to know for this chapter are architectural, since Percy gives Annabeth a brief tour of the castle. The first term is "blind arcade," which is a series of arches (an arcade) built against a wall for decorative, rather than structural, purposes. The second term is "Decorated Gothic," which is an ornate style of architecture that was popular in the late 14th/early 15th centuries, when this story is set. Finally, a "chancel" is the front area of a cathedral or chapel where the clergy perform their duties. It holds the altar on a raised platform, and is usually separated from the rest of the church (the "nave," where the lay people sit in their pews and worship) by short altar rails. You can google blind arcades, Decorated Gothic, and chancel for pictures, but it's not necessarily to understand the story.**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

Lady Annabeth stared unhappily out the window of her family's enclosed carriage as it rolled through Blackwood Forest. She and her father were almost done their journey to Merchester Castle, but the last leg of the trip seemed like it would never end.

After several minutes of looking at the scenery, Annabeth turned her attention to the open book resting on her lap. She barely managed to read two sentences, however, before her carriage ran over a tree root on the uneven dirt road. The carriage lurched forward, causing Annabeth to lose her place for the umpteenth time since they entered the forest. She sighed in frustration and snapped the large tome shut, but kept it securely in her lap so that it wouldn't fall.

When Annabeth looked up, she saw the Duke of Attica staring at her from the opposite bench in the carriage. He held her gaze for a full minute before red patches began to appear on his face. Then he cleared his throat and looked away, all while blinking suspiciously fast.

A sharp, sudden, pain slashed through Annabeth's chest, but she quickly suppressed the feeling. After twenty-one years, she should have been immune to her father's detachment.

"I'm glad that you decided to come today, Annabeth." The duke smiled briefly in her general direction, but kept his eyes averted. Annabeth did not bother to smile back.

"Prince Perseus invited me to come," she said by way of explanation.

Frederick nodded once. "Yes, but if he'd invited you three weeks ago—before the tournament—I'm not certain that you would have accepted."

Annabeth did not bother to point out that she had little choice in the matter. Both she and the duke knew that he would have forced her to accept. Still, she couldn't deny that his intervention was unnecessary. She was actually eager for their upcoming visit. The prince's unorthodox offer of friendship had sparked her interest. She wanted to learn more about him. Also, his invitation letter had included a promise to show her around the castle. How could she refuse such an offer, when the architecture at Merchester was so impressive?

Annabeth was torn from her thoughts when the duke began to speak again. "Anyways, I'm glad that you're warming up to the prince. This marriage is very important to me."

His words washed over Annabeth like a bucket of ice cold water. She knew how important her marriage was to him. It won him the king's favour, ensured his restoration to court, and gave his future grandchild a claim to the throne of Atlantis. He'd cited all those benefits to her, repeatedly. He would gladly to risk her life to achieve them. She supposed that Frederick would be less enthusiastic about her marriage if _his_ life was on the line, instead of hers, but she kept that opinion to herself.

An uncomfortable silence settled over the carriage, but Annabeth refused to break it. She was still angry with her father—for his behaviour towards her, the reason behind that behaviour, and his disregard for her safety, among other things. She knew that if she spoke, some of that anger would leak into her words and strain their relationship even further. Frederick must have sensed her frustration, because he did not push her for a response. He simply returned to the book in his lap while Annabeth clenched her jaw shut and stared out the carriage window. They were still in Blackwood Forest, but she noted with relief that the trees were thinning. That meant they were almost at the clearing.

Sure enough, the Chase family carriage exited Blackwood Forest just a few minutes later. The dirt road it was travelling on became smoother almost instantly, since fewer tree roots obstructed the path. Annabeth was grateful for that change, because it meant that she could return to her book. Nevertheless, she decided to look out the window for a few more minutes. Merchester Castle was finally visible on the horizon. A sprawling castle town flanked its north side, and the Blue Sea surrounded its western and southern walls. The sea was a strong natural defence that protected those walls from attack, but it also gave the castle access to supplies brought by boat during sieges.

Only the eastern wall was vulnerable to direct attack, but it was surrounded by a wide moat that connected to the sea on both sides. A single wooden drawbridge allowed visitors to cross the moat, but it could be raised during attacks to limit invaders' access to the castle. Even if enemy troops managed to breach the outer wall—which Annabeth thought was unlikely to ever happen—they had only defeated the first of the castle's many defences, which grew stronger as they approached the castle's center.

There was a reason why the royal family had selected Merchester Castle as their primary residence. They were safe there, even in times of turbulence. Annabeth hoped that safety would extend to her, as well.

Rather than dwell on that thought any further, Annabeth returned to her book. She read while the carriage approached Merchester Castle and passed through the outer gate. She didn't bother to look up until several minutes later, when the carriage came to a sudden stop inside the inner bailey. A servant opened the carriage door and extended a hand to help her down, so Annabeth shut her book reluctantly. She placed it on the seat next to her, and then accepted the servant's help. Her feet had barely touched the ground before a familiar figure walked into view.

"Luke?!" Annabeth rushed forward to greet her old friend as he exited the Great Hall. "What are you doing here?"

Luke grinned happily at her and gestured down to his clothes. That was when Annabeth noticed that he was wearing an emerald green tabard emblazoned with the royal coat of arms. A leather belt cinched the fabric tight around his waist, and a long, sheathed, sword hung from the belt. He was dressed like a royal guard.

"You're a guard, now?" She questioned, "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I thought about writing to you," Luke explained, "but I knew that you would be visiting the castle soon, and I wanted to tell you in person."

Annabeth's father joined them before she could respond. He noticed Luke's uniform immediately, and clapped the young man proudly on the back. "Congratulations, Lord Luke. The king has never been safer, now that he has you to protect him."

Annabeth echoed her father's words, which caused Luke to smile widely. She returned his grin, then questioned, "When did you receive your position?"

"King Poseidon offered it to me during the tournament banquet, while everyone was dancing. He said he was looking to expand the royal guard, and he was impressed with my performance in the joust, so he asked me to join."

Frederick winked. "A wise decision. Anyways, I need to go speak with the king, but it was nice to see you again, Lord Luke. I'm glad that you've finally found a position at court."

Luke's grin hardened slightly. He hated being reminded that, as a younger son, he would never inherit his father's lands or title. He needed a court position in order to remain influential. Nevertheless, Frederick didn't seem to notice Luke's unhappiness as he left to speak with Poseidon. Annabeth _did_ notice, so she placed a comforting hand on Luke's arm. That small gesture was enough to bring the warmth back to his clear blue eyes.

"I suppose you're here to see the prince?" He questioned.

Annabeth nodded. "Yes. He promised to give me a tour of the castle."

A hint of excitement leaked into her tone, which caused Luke to laugh. He knew all about her interest in architecture.

"I know about his promise," the guard admitted. "I actually suggested the idea."

Annabeth looked confused at that, so Luke explained himself, "Prince Perseus came to speak with me on my first day here. He said that you mentioned we were friends, and he asked me about you. He wanted to know about your interests, so he could make a good impression and get to know you better."

Annabeth fought back a smile. It was sweet of the prince to put so much effort into pleasing her. That suggested his offer of friendship was sincere. She was curious, however, about what Luke told him. When she asked, the blond guard just laughed.

"Not anything inappropriate, I assure you. I just mentioned that you love architecture and reading. He seemed surprised to hear about the architecture bit, but when I suggested that he give you a tour of the castle, he agreed."

Annabeth nodded. Architecture was an unusual area of interest for young noble women, so the prince's wonder was unsurprising. Nevertheless, she was glad that he'd chosen to indulge her odd hobby.

"Ah," Luke suddenly exclaimed, "there's the prince now."

Annabeth turned around just in time to see Percy approach them. He greeted them each with a smile, then turned to Annabeth.

"I'm glad that you were able to make it today, Lady Annabeth. I hope that your journey here went well?"

"It did," Annabeth confirmed. She conveniently failed to mention the bumpy dirt road and her sore back. "I arrived just a few minutes ago with my father. He's gone off to speak with the king, so I was using the opportunity to catch up with Lu—Lord Luke."

Luke cleared his throat awkwardly at Annabeth's near slip with his courtesy title. They used each other's Christian names in private, but reverted to their titles whenever other nobles were nearby. Prince Perseus raised his eyebrows, but he did not comment on the mistake.

An awkward silence settled over the trio, but Luke broke it a moment later. "It was wonderful to see you again, Lady Annabeth, but I should leave you to your visit."

He bid both her and the prince goodbye, then left to attend his duties. As soon as he was out of sight, Prince Perseus turned to Annabeth and smiled.

"Are you ready to begin the tour?"

"Of course," Annabeth responded. She'd seen parts of the castle during the tournament three weeks earlier, but she was eager to explore her future home more thoroughly.

The prince gestured to the courtyard on their right. "You've already seen the Great Hall and the throne room, so why don't we begin with the chapel?"

Annabeth agreed, so he led her towards a large stone structure built flush against the North Wall. He pulled one of its heavy wooden doors open, then stepped aside and gestured for Annabeth to enter. She stepped forward eagerly, and then glanced around the long, narrow, room. Her grey eyes grew wide with wonder at the sight.

Two sets of ten wooden pews faced the chancel at the front of the room. A thin strip of red carpet covered the aisle that divided them. It began just a few feet from where Annabeth was standing, and ended at the altar rails, which marked both the end of the nave—where the lay people worshipped in their pews—and the beginning of the chancel—where the clergy performed their duties. The chancel was raised two steps above the rest of the chapel. It contained the altar, which rested on a raised platform against the chapel's eastern wall.

The furnishings were all ornately decorated, but they were still typical of a chapel. What impressed Annabeth was the architecture. Blind arcades ran the length of the northern and southern walls, along the nave. They were not weight-bearing, and therefore had no architectural purpose, but they looked fantastic. Stain glass windows covered every wall but the north one, which was fitted with golden candelabras instead, because it was built against the castle's inner wall. All of the windows were designed in the curvilinear Decorated Gothic style, so they were subdivided in elaborate patterns by thin bars of stone.

Annabeth marvelled at the beauty of it all, but when she looked at her fiancée, he was staring at her, rather than the chapel. A thoughtful frown tugged at the corner of his mouth.

Annabeth's curiosity got the better of her, so she asked him, "Is something wrong, Prince Perseus?"

The prince shook his head. "No, everything is fine. But please, call me Percy when we're alone."

"Very well," Annabeth acquiesced. "Then you may call me Annabeth."

Percy smiled brightly at her words. Then he lifted his right hand and gestured vaguely around the room. "So, _Annabeth,_ what do you think?"

Annabeth mirrored his grin. "It's brilliant! Most new buildings use perpendicular designs, but I still prefer the curvilinear style, myself. It just seems to—" She broke off when the prince's eyes glazed over. Her grin morphed into a sheepish smile. "Sorry. I got a little carried away with the details, but my point is that it's beautiful. The stone work is very impressive."

Percy seemed happy with her answer, but a pensive expression crossed his face. "You're much more informed than I realized. When Lord Luke told me that you like architecture, I just assumed that you found the buildings pleasing to look at, not that you actually studied the art."

He smiled to show that he meant no offense, so Annabeth did not take his words as an insult. She merely shrugged, "My father has an impressive collection of books, covering a wide range of topics. I've learned a great deal by reading them, but architecture has always been one of my favourite subjects."

"Why is that?" Percy questioned, "What aspect of architecture appeals to you?"

Annabeth didn't know how to answer him immediately, so she took a few minutes to compile a response. After a long pause, she finally admitted, "I suppose it's the permanence of buildings."

She took a deep breath, then explained, "Our lives are never stable. We're constantly subjected to floods, fires, plagues, famine, and war—the current situation in Atlantis is just one example. Our lives are unpredictable and short, but the buildings we create," she gestured to the chapel around them, "they're stable, and completely under our control. As long as we build them correctly, they'll stand for entire _centuries_ after we're gone. I find it comforting to know that—regardless of the uncertainties we face each day—at least _one_ aspect of our lives will never change."

Heat rushed to Annabeth's cheeks as soon as she finished her speech. She felt as though she'd just bared a small part of her soul. Thankfully, the prince didn't laugh. He just gaped at her with a flummoxed expression.

"That's very…" Percy trailed off as he searched for the right word, which he found a moment later, "philosophical."

He looked genuinely impressed, so Annabeth flashed him a smile. "Thank you, Percy. But that's enough talking about me—we should finish the tour."

"Of course," Percy cocked a single black eyebrow at her. "Any requests for the next room?"

Annabeth nodded, "I'm eager to see your library. You must have an impressive collection."

Percy's smile drooped a little at her words. "I'm sorry to say that we don't have a library at Merchester. My family doesn't read much."

~~~ A Kingdom Divided ~~~

Percy watched Annabeth's reaction carefully. Luke warned him that she loved books. Yet, somehow, Percy never thought about how she would respond to the lackluster collection at Merchester, until he saw her face fall.

"Oh." Disappointment was clear in Annabeth's tone. "You don't have _any_ books?"

"We have a few, but not many," Percy admitted. He rarely read anything longer than a letter, and his parents were no better. Poseidon kept a single shelf of books in his study, but they were always covered in a thick layer of dust.

Percy frowned, then changed the subject. "How about I show you the gatehouse next? It contains the royal apartments, so you can see your future chambers."

Annabeth nodded dejectedly. She seemed to have lost her earlier enthusiasm for the tour, but she still managed to give Percy a polite smile. "That would be lovely, thank you."

Percy led her out of the chapel and into the courtyard. They were less than halfway across the enclosure when a commotion arose from the gatehouse tunnel, where two guards stood arguing with a thin blond man dressed in a bishop's white cassock. The man's pale skin started to turn red with rage as he shouted at the guards.

"Who are you to deny me entry? I am a man of the cloth, and I demand an audience with the king!"

Identical looks of irritation crossed the guards' faces, but they kept their voices low as they responded to the bishop. One guard lifted his hands in a placating gesture, while the other gripped the hilt of his sheathed sword. Percy decided to intervene before the situation escalated further. He turned to Annabeth and excused himself, then walked purposefully towards the arguing trio.

"What's going on here?" He demanded as soon as he was within hearing range.

Each of the three men whirled to look at him, but only the guards recognized him. They bowed, then the one with his hand on his sword stepped forward.

"Prince Perseus! I'm sorry for this display. Bishop Octavian of Roma was just expressing his desire to speak with the king. We've already dispatched a man to ask King Poseidon if such an appointment is possible."

"Prince Perseus?" The blond man regarded Percy with obvious interest. His wild blue eyes swept over the prince's form, "I wished for the king, but I suppose you will do."

Percy bit back an affronted retort, and extended a gracious smile instead. "I would be pleased to grant you an audience, Bishop Octavian. We can speak privately in the throne room." He turned to the guards, "Please inform my father of this development."

The guards nodded, so Percy gestured for Octavian to follow him. He led the bishop to the middle of the courtyard, where Annabeth was still standing, then he explained the situation to her briefly.

"The Bishop of Roma requires an immediate meeting. I'm sorry to interrupt our tour, Lady Annabeth, but you are welcome to join us."

"You promised a private meeting," the bishop objected. Annabeth pinned him with a glare so fierce that he cowered. "Actually, if this is Lady Annabeth, then the matter relates to her as well. I will allow her presence."

"So good of you," Percy muttered. Octavian scowled at his insolence, but Annabeth didn't bother to hide her amused grin. Percy smiled back at her. He usually showed more respect to clergy, but the Bishop of Roma wasn't behaving like most clerics. "Follow me."

Percy led the group to the throne room and stepped inside. Annabeth and Octavian followed shortly after, but two more figures stepped into the room after them. It was the king and the Duke of Attica.

Poseidon spoke first. "I heard that the Bishop of Roma _demanded_ an audience with me." Judging by his emphasis on the word 'demanded,' Poseidon's guards had informed him of the bishop's forcefulness. Regardless, the king plastered a smile on his face and tipped his head towards the other end of the hall. "Let me sit in my throne, and then we may begin."

Everyone shuffled the length of the room, but Annabeth, Frederick, and Octavian stopped at the bottom of the dais, while Percy and his father climbed the steps. They settled into their respective thrones—Poseidon's being the largest chair in the center, and Percy's being a slightly smaller one on the left. The queen's throne, placed a little to the right of the king's, remained empty.

As soon as Poseidon was sitting, he turned his gaze towards Octavian. "So, Bishop Octavian. What matters have you come to discuss?"

The clergyman puffed out his chest. "I have come to demand that you break your son's betrothal."

A heavy silence followed that announcement. Frederick opened his mouth as if to speak, but no words came out. Percy felt similarly speechless. Even the king appeared shocked, but Poseidon recovered himself first. He glowered at the bishop. "You speak too boldly to your king. I should have you removed from this castle and forbidden re-entry until you learn some respect."

Poseidon's green eyes looked as fierce as the raging sea when he was angry, but Octavian barely acknowledged the intense glare directed at him. He huffed indignantly, "I am just a messenger, relaying the words of my master."

Octavian lifted one hand to his pectoral cross, and pointed heavenward with the other. "You rule at his pleasure, so heed his words: do not marry your son to the Duke of Attica's daughter. The Lord will punish Atlantis if you do. He will cause terrible things to befall this kingdom, and he will remove you from your throne."

Poseidon paled at the bishop's words. Percy watched, speechless, as he pointed a trembling finger at Octavian and shouted, _"How dare you threaten your king?!"_

"These words are not my own," the bishop countered calmly. "They belong to the one who sent me."

Frederick stepped forward before the king could respond, and then bowed towards Poseidon. "Please forgive my interruption, your highness, but I have a few questions for the bishop."

Poseidon gave a curt nod, so the duke turned to Octavian and resumed speaking, "How did you come by this message from God?"

The bishop pursed his lips, "I received a vision."

"Could you explain the vision to me?"

"I was praying, when suddenly I heard a voice—the voice of God. He told me to come here and convey the message I just shared. That is all."

"I see." Frederick cocked his head to one side. "Did God tell you why he has forbidden the union between Prince Perseus and my daughter?"

Octavian sneered, "The Lord does not need to explain himself."

"That means no," Frederick concluded. He frowned at the bishop, then spoke again, "What proof do you offer of this vision?"

"Proof?!" Octavian spluttered, "A bishop does not need proof to endorse his words. He is a man of God. You must have faith in his honesty."

The duke scoffed. "In other words, you have no proof. I'm not surprised, and neither do I believe your story. You say that God has forbidden the marriage between Prince Perseus and Lady Annabeth, but the pope himself approved their union; he confirmed God's blessing upon it. How do you explain that?"

The Bishop of Roma paused. His blue eyes glanced nervously around the room. "The Lord works in mysterious ways. I do not pretend to understand him, and neither should you."

He turned away from the duke and faced the king instead. "The message I have delivered is true. Do not be swayed by the duke's cunning words. He is eager for the marriage to transpire because it will elevate his position."

Percy had remained silent for most of the conversation, but he decided to voice his opinion then, "I think the duke's council is wise. As he said, the pope has assured God's blessing on my marriage. I do not know why we should trust you over him, when he leads the church."

Octavian seemed to realize that he was not going to convince them, because he frowned deeply and took a small step backwards. "I see that none of you will listen to reason. There is nothing more that I can do—your hearts are too hard to heed God's warning." He shook his head sadly, "Atlantis will suffer because of your obstinacy. You all will suffer personally, as well. The union between your houses will devastate this kingdom."

Octavian left the room swiftly after delivering that final warning. Percy's right hand inched towards his sword as he watched the man go, but he resisted the urge to take Riptide out of its sheath. The bishop could be slain for treason after uttering his threats against the king, but no one present dared to strike a man of the cloth. They watched him leave in silence. As soon as Octavian was out of sight, the king stood from his throne.

"The pope's blessing means more than a bishop's condemnation, so there is no reason to break the betrothal. Prince Perseus and Lady Annabeth will marry eighteen days from now, just like we planned."

No one objected. Octavian seemed untrustworthy, and his word meant nothing when compared to the pope's. Still, an uneasy feeling followed Percy around for the rest of that day. No matter how hard he thought about it, he couldn't determine the bishop's motivation for lying. Maybe Octavian was insane—his blue eyes were unusually wild—but Percy wondered if there was something more sinister at play.

Regardless, he was glad that Octavian failed to disrupt his engagement. The situation in the provinces was worsening—more food was disappearing, the plague was spreading, and new fires were being set each night. Even Attica was starting to have problems, since a few frightened peasants in Erudale claimed that witches were behind Atlantis's problems. They started an unsanctioned witch hunt, and if the other problems weren't solved soon, more hunts would likely break out. In other words, the country was growing increasingly unstable. Percy's marriage to Annabeth was more important than ever before, so it was fortunate that Frederick didn't call off their betrothal. A rebellion was starting to look inevitable, and the monarchy would need Frederick's support in order to survive it.

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 **A/N: I feel a little guilty making Octavian a bishop, because he's such an evil character. Unfortunately, the medieval church, just like any other institution with a lot of power, attracted some pretty corrupt people. There were also really great clerics with pure motivations for joining the church, but the nasty ones (like Octavian) tend to stand out. Hopefully I didn't offend any Catholics.**

 **Anyway, there are a couple new questions that arise from this chapter. Why did Octavian lie about his "vision"-or is it possible that he's telling the truth? Also, Annabeth said thst she was angry with her father "for his behaviour towards her, the reason behind that behaviour, and his disregard for her safety." What do you think caused the rift in their relationship? Finally, what role will Luke play in this story? Is he good, or evil?**

 **Admittedly, even I don't know the answer to the last two questions about Luke. I'm still trying to decide what role he'll play, but I know the answer to the first two questions, and I'd love to hear your guesses.**

 **Thanks for reading and please review!**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Happy Thanksgiving to my American readers! It's just a short chapter, but this update is my present to you :)**

 **I don't think there's any special terms that you need to know for this chapter, so don't worry about definitions. The one thing you should know is that this chapter is about the Percabeth wedding. I did a lot of research and found the authentic script that would have been used at this time. It's the "Order for Consecration of Marriage" from the Sarum Use. The original text is in Latin, but some guy named Matthew Hoskin translated it to English. If you're interested, you can find the script here:** **classic-christian-texts/order-for-consecration-of-marriage-sarum-use/**

 **I changed a bit of the archaic English to modern English to make it easier to read, but I kept a few words in (like thee, thou, and thy) that I thought everyone would be familiar with.**

 **Anyways, enjoy!**

 **PS. Thank you to PrincessOfAtlantis101, Jedi1, and Bolle Accidentali for reviewing Chapter 6!**

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The sun was shining brightly in the clear, blue sky when Percy arrived at the chapel for his wedding. A large crowd had gathered in the castle's inner bailey, but it parted for the prince as he approached. The gap revealed a bishop, dressed in full vestments, waiting outside the closed chapel doors. Percy joined him there, where he and Annabeth would marry in the sight of everyone present.

The king and queen stood slightly to his right; neither one spoke to the prince, but they greeted him with subtle nods as he took his place in front of the bishop. Percy nodded back at them, but he was wearing his heavy golden crown, so the movement was stiff and uncomfortable. Thankfully, no one seemed to notice his lack of regal grace. Everyone remained silent until trumpet calls announced Annabeth's arrival several minutes later.

Time seemed to slow for Percy as he craned his neck to see Annabeth. The Duke of Attica was escorting her, yet Percy's vision tunnelled until all he saw was his bride. She was wearing a fitted ultramarine gown with gold trim and a long train. Her long blond hair fell in perfect curls around her face and over her shoulders—Percy had only ever seen her with it braided before, but now it flowed loosely behind her. The sight caused an odd flutter in his chest.

Annabeth also wore a garland of orange blossoms on her head like a crown, and while her right hand was settled in the crook of her father's left arm, her left hand was holding a large bouquet of herbs and flowers. Three bridesmaids followed her; they were all dressed like Annabeth in order to confuse the evil spirits that liked to harm brides on her wedding days.

Annabeth kept her eyes pointed downwards as a gesture of humility while she walked towards the chapel, but she raised them to Percy's when she was three feet away. That shocked the awed look off the prince's face and shook him back into the present. He blushed for having been caught staring at her, then turned his head back towards the chapel doors. Annabeth and her father joined him a moment later, but the bridesmaids stood off to the left. Their job was done, because Annabeth arrived at the chapel safe and demon-free. From that point on, it was the prince's duty to protect her.

The bishop cleared his throat to signal that he was ready to begin.

"Behold, brethren! We have come here in the sight of God, the angels, and all his saints in the presence of the church, to join together the bodies of this man," he gestured towards Percy, "and of this woman," he gestured towards Annabeth. "Here a priest shall examine the persons so that henceforth they may be one in flesh and two spirits in faith and in the law of God, at the same time to the promised eternal life, whatever they have done previously. Therefore, I warn you all that if any of you know of any reason why these two persons cannot be lawfully joined together, he is to confess it now."

King Poseidon had ordered the castle guards to deny Bishop Octavian entry—only nobles with invitations in hand were allowed into the castle that day—so no one present offered any objections. There was a brief silence, and then the officiating bishop spoke again.

"Prince Perseus and Lady Annabeth. You, also, are required before God to declare any reasons prohibiting your marriage. If there are any, or if you do not enter this union willingly, then speak now."

Another silence fell over the assembly. This time, Percy shifted his weight uncomfortably from one foot to the other. Annabeth's medical condition was a reason, because it prevented them from becoming a proper husband and wife. Withholding that information was a sin, but he could not bring himself to mention it—not when the stability of Atlantis was at stake. Annabeth also kept quiet, so the prince prayed silently for their forgiveness. Meanwhile, the bishop turned to him and resumed speaking.

"Prince Perseus, do you wish to have this woman as a wife, and to esteem her? To honour, hold, and protect her—while healthy and sick—just as a husband ought to do for a wife? And do you swear to forsake all other women, and to cling to her so long as your life and hers will endure?"

A lump of guilt rose in Percy's throat, but he swallowed it forcefully. "I do."

He sent another prayer heavenward as the bishop turned to Annabeth.

"Lady Annabeth, do you wish to have this man as a husband, and to obey him? To serve, esteem, honour, and guard him—while healthy and sick—just as a wife ought to do for a husband? And do you swear to forsake all other men, and to cling to him so long as your life and his will endure?"

Annabeth answered without hesitation. "I do."

She and Percy both turned away from the bishop so that they could face each other. The Duke of Attica then removed Annabeth's right hand from the crook of his arm and placed it over Percy's right hand. He then stepped backwards, while the bishop coached Percy through his vows.

"I, Prince Perseus, take thee, Lady Annabeth, to be my wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, till death do us part, if the holy Church will permit it, and thereto I plight thee my troth."

The bishop then turned to Annabeth and coached her through her vows. "I, Lady Annabeth, take thee, Prince Perseus, to be my wedded husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to be bonnair and buxom, in bed and board, till death us depart, if the holy Church will permit it, and thereto I plight thee my troth."

Percy drew his hand back from Annabeth's as two pages stepped forward. One carried a book, which he offered to the bishop, while the other carried a velvet cushion. The cushion held a single gold band adorned with a sapphire, and a leather pouch containing silver and gold. Percy took both items from the cushion and placed them on top of the book in the bishop's hands.

"Has the ring been blessed before?" The cleric questioned. Percy shook his head, so the bishop blessed it then. "The Lord be with you."

"And with thy spirit," the assembled guests chimed in response.

The bishop then bowed his head. "Let us pray. Bless, Lord, this ring which we bless in thy holy name so that whosoever would wear it may persist in thy peace, and remain in thy will, and live in thy love, and increase and grow old and be increased into length of days. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen."

Another page boy stepped forward and offered the bishop a bronze vessel filled with holy water and an aspergillum. The boy held the bowl while the bishop picked up the aspergillum, filled it with water, and then used it to sprinkle the water over Percy's ring. Once the aspergillum was empty, he returned it to the bowl and handed the book—with the ring and leather pouch on top—to Percy. The prince accepted it with his right hand, then passed it back to the page. He removed the pouch and ring, then grabbed Annabeth's left hand with his own and recited, "With this ring I thee wed, this gold and silver I thee give, and with my body I thee worship, and with all my worldly goods I thee endow."

Percy passed Annabeth the leather pouch to symbolize that he could, and would, provide for her. Then he placed the newly blessed ring on her left thumb, saying, "In the name of the Father—" he removed the ring and placed it on her forefinger, "and of the Son—" then her middle finger, "and of the Holy Ghost—" and finally on her ring finger, "Amen."

Percy released the ring on that finger, then he and Annabeth both bowed their heads while the bishop pronounced a blessing over them. "May you be blessed by God, who created the world out of nothing, Amen."

They lifted their heads again, but the rest of the ceremony passed in a blur for Percy. The bishop recited scripture, delivered the _Gloria Patri_ doxology, and led them in a series of prayers, blessings, and responsive dialogues, yet Percy barely listened. His mind was too busy trying to register the fact that he was married. He thought that he would feel different—more responsible and mature—once he was wed, but he didn't feel any different than when he had woken up that morning.

The prince snapped out of his daze just in time for the final prayer. The bishop bowed his head, but raised both hands high with his palms outstretched. "Let us pray. May the God of Abraham, God of Isaac, God of Jacob, be with us: and may he join you together and may he pour into you his blessing, which God lives and reigns through all of the ages of ages. Amen."

The bishop then lowered his hands and led the assembly into the chapel for more prayers, more wedding blessings, and Mass. Percy and Annabeth were the first to follow him into the building, with the king and queen closely behind him. The Duke of Attica and his family followed shortly after, and then the rest of the noble guests entered.

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 **A/N: So what did you think about the Percabeth wedding? I hope you weren't underwhelmed by the lack of kiss or pronouncement of their marriage, but those weren't actually part of the original medieval ceremonies.**

 **Sorry that I made you wait a whole week for a 2,000 word chapter-it was initially longer (about 4,500), but I cut the second half out because it was just a series of prayers, blessings, and responsive dialogues between the bishop and wedding guests. I edited those parts out and glossed over them with a cliche "the rest of the ceremony passed in a blur," because it bogged the chapter down without adding much to the story.**

 **I've already started working on the next chapter, and I think you guys will really enjoy it. Chapter 8 will cover the wedding feast and celebrations. I have plans to include a few medieval wedding traditions that we no longer practice today, but it's also a lot heavier on the Percabeth (so both the history buff readers and the people reading this story for the romance should enjoy it). I don't want to give too much away, but here's one spoiler for you: one of those traditions will include Percabeth's first kiss!**

 **Anyways, here's four historical notes for those who are interested: (1) White wedding dresses didn't become popular until Queen Victoria wore one at her wedding in 1840. Before then, noble brides wore bright colours (peasants wore their "sunday best"). Blue was a popular choice for noble brides because it symbolized purity and was connected with the Virgin Mary. (2)** **In the Late Medieval Period, nobles got married in their castles or outside the doors of a cathedral,but never inside the church (that tradition evolved later). Peasants married inside the bride's home. (3) Couples weren't required to have their wedding blessed or officiated by a priest (all that marriage required was the couple's mutual consent to wed). Nevertheless, it became increasingly common for nobles to have priests or bishops officiate their weddings at the end of the Medieval period. When clergy was involved, the Sarum Use was often used to determine the order of the service (just like in the story). (4) Finally, the part that I wrote about bridesmaids was true-they dressed like the bride and escorted her to the wedding in order to confuse any demons that wanted to harm her on her wedding day.**

 **That's all for now. Thanks for reading!**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Wow! I want to start this chapter off with a huge thank you to everyone who reviewed! They would be: Bolle Accidentali, Biaxbm, ZeynepD, Jedi1, schinthaladpudi, those-that-wander, Wow (a guest), bookloverforevah18, and aquachick521. You're all awesome! I couldn't believe that I'd gotten so many reviews (nine in total for the last update, which is _three times_ the average for my chapters so far). Each of your comments brought a huge smile to my face, so again, I'd like to say: thank you!**

 **You've waited a week for this update so I'll keep the rest of this author's note short. You just need to know that "cotehardie" was a fitted jacket worn by medieval men in the late 14th century** **. Women also wore cotehardies, but theirs were fitted dresses.**

 **That's all for now, so enjoy the chapter! As promised, it includes the first Percabeth kiss.**

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Percy and Annabeth's wedding guests poured out of the chapel and into the courtyard shortly after Mass ended. The nobles gathered outside the chapel doors, but left a pathway for the new royal couple to walk through. As soon as Percy appeared in the doorway with Annabeth on his left side, they cheered and applauded for the couple. Several guests threw seeds over the newlyweds' heads in order to bless them with fertility. A few of those seeds became lodged in Percy's hair as he led Annabeth through the crowd, but he appreciated the gesture anyways.

He and Annabeth approached the Great Hall, where their wedding feast was ready to begin. The hall looked just like it had forty days earlier, at the tournament banquet. Two long tables covered in linen cloths ran the length of the hall. They were flanked by dark wooden benches, and they were empty aside from a few candelabras and centerpieces. The guests would supply their own plates, goblets, and utensils. Only the High Table, which rested at the far end of the hall, on the dais, had cutlery and dishes already set out.

Percy and Annabeth walked towards that table while their guests entered the hall behind them. Each guest was greeted by a servant and led to his or her seat, but they all remained standing until Percy, Annabeth, and their parents sat down at the High Table.

As soon as the last guest of honour was seated, the rest of the nobles sat also, and the castle chaplain blessed the meal. He barely spoke the word 'Amen' before several servants carried water basins, bowls, and linen towels into the Great Hall. The servants helped each guest wash, and then kitchen squires brought in the dishes for the first course. They served the High Table first, presenting a civet of hare, a quarter of a stag, a stuffed chicken, and a loin of veal. The chicken and veal were covered with sauce, gilt sugarplums, and pomegranate seeds. The servants also placed enormous meat pies at either end of the table, and then placed smaller pies on top of them until they formed the shape of a crown. Percy accepted portions from every dish, and when he bit into the pies, he tasted deer, gosling, capons, chicken, pigeon, and rabbit in the filling.

The food was so good, and the prince was so hungry, that he barely spoke a word to his new bride. There were jesters pranking guests at the lower tables, minstrels playing songs from the gallery, and multiple jugglers providing entertainment, so Annabeth did not speak to him much, either. In fact, they both enjoyed the food and entertainment so much that all of the feast's five courses passed before they shared a full conversation.

Percy turned towards Annabeth while she was washing her hands at the end of the final course, then he smiled. "Did you enjoy the meal, Princess Annabeth?"

His bride looked taken aback at her new title, but she quickly recovered herself. "Yes. Did you?"

Percy confirmed that he did. Then he paused while Annabeth dried her hands on a linen towel and passed it off to a servant. As soon as the princess's hands were empty and her attention was back on him, Percy cleared his throat nervously. "You look beautiful today."

Annabeth looked pleased with his compliment, but her smile quickly turned devious. "Only today?"

The prince spluttered. "I—no, of course not. I just meant—"

"Relax," his bride chuckled. She placed a comforting hand on his forearm, "I'm only teasing."

Percy nodded, but he still felt flustered. For some reason, talking with Annabeth made him extremely nervous. Looking at the princess then, with her golden hair glowing in the candlelight and her grey eyes glistening, Percy was afraid that he would say something embarrassing.

"I like your dress."

Like that.

The prince closed his eyes as heat rushed to his face. Chivalry required him to compliment his lady on her beauty, and Annabeth gave him a lot to work with in that regard, so why did he choose to comment on her _clothing_? What kind of man took an interest in his lady's dress _?_

When the prince opened his eyes again, Annabeth was staring at him with an amused expression on her face.

"I mean the colour," Percy tried to explain. "Blue is my favourite."

He was saved from further embarrassment when the castle chaplain stood to deliver the post-meal prayer. The Great Hall grew silent, but Annabeth leaned over and whispered in his ear just before the priest began to speak. "My favourite is green."

She leaned back with a small smile on her face, then folded her hands and bowed her head. Meanwhile, the prince glanced down at his clothes—an emerald cotehardie, white hose, and a forest green cloak. He grinned widely as the priest began to pray.

"We give Thee thanks, Almighty God, for all Thy benefits, and for the poor souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, may they rest in peace. Amen."

"Amen," the guests echoed. They crossed themselves, and then stood so that the lower tables and benches could be cleared. Servants carried that furniture away, but two squires brought a new, smaller table in. There was nothing unusual about the table—it was three feet long, equally wide, and covered in a white table cloth—but Percy's heart stuttered when the squires set it down. They placed it at the bottom of the dais, in full view of both the High Table and the rest of the assembly. Then a new squire placed a single gold plate upon it.

The prince felt Annabeth stiffen beside him as the guests stepped forward, one by one, to place small buns on the plate. Once the gold surface was covered, they started placing the bread rolls on top of each other to form a tall tower. By the time that the last guest placed his bun down, the pile stood two feet tall, and the table lifted it another three feet off the ground.

The guests glanced at Percy and Annabeth, whose faces had turned bright red, then they began to whisper excitedly amongst themselves. Their whispers grew louder as the royal couple stood and walked slowly towards their wedding cake. Percy stopped next to the right side of the table, while Annabeth stood on the left. They made awkward eye contact over the buns, then shuffled closer until their waists were pressed against the table.

Percy's heart rate doubled as he thought about what came next; they had to kiss over the cake. Unfortunately, that was easier said than done when the buns were piled up so high. Knocking the bread down was a bad omen, but if the cake remained intact after their kiss, they would enjoy a long and prosperous marriage. Given their secret plans to get an annulment, the prince half expected every bun to roll off the plate.

He leaned in slowly and hesitantly while Annabeth did the same. Their lips met in the middle, just two inches above the highest bun. The cake stood firm, but Percy's mind turned to mush. He suddenly couldn't remember—why hadn't they tried this sooner?

Then Annabeth pulled back, and Percy's brain gradually resolidified. It still felt a little wobbly, like the jelly they'd had for dessert, but his senses were all working fine. He heard the guests cheering for them, felt his heart beating wildly, and saw Annabeth staring at him with wide grey eyes. She was biting her lower lip anxiously, which made Percy frown. Kissing him couldn't have been _that_ bad.

The prince didn't have time to dwell on that thought, however, because the minstrels started playing a new, slow song from the gallery. That was his signal to open the evening dance with Annabeth. He offered her his arm, and they walked to the center of the Great Hall together. The guests all circled around them, and the music grew louder as Percy withdrew his arm, then clasped Annabeth's left hand with his own. He lifted their joined hands up to the height of their heads, and then they each took a small step backwards. Next, they moved forward until they were standing so close that their left forearms rested vertically against each other. They repeated those steps—moving backwards, then forwards—and then, when their forearms were flush against each other once more, they maintained that position and rotated slowly to the right. They turned in a complete circle, and then, when they were back to their original positions, they repeated each step.

Other guests quickly joined the dance. They all clasped hands with a partner, then stepped backwards, forwards, backwards, forwards, and rotated in time with the music. The king and queen also joined, and soon, the entire assembly was dancing.

The rest of the evening passed quickly. It consisted of dancing, drinking, music, and more drinking. The king and queen danced for a while, but they pleaded exhaustion after the lively estampie and promptly returned to their seats at the High Table. In comparison, Percy and Annabeth took hardly any breaks. The music seemed to dispel Annabeth's earlier anxiety, and the liveliness of the crowd energized the prince. They danced almost every set—both fast and slow—and both seemed to be enjoying themselves immensely. Every once in a while, Percy would notice his parents beaming at them from the High Table, but he was too busy concentrating on his dance steps to pay them much attention.

That changed quickly when the king stood from his chair and called out to the crowd, "It's time for the bedding!"

The music came to an immediate halt, and every guest stopped dancing. A group of young men charged the newlywed couple, and Percy had to suppress his battle instincts, which told him to fight them off. He knew that the men meant them no harm, so he allowed them to lift both him and Annabeth up off the ground. Nevertheless, his hand did itch for his sword when they started grasping for Annabeth's garter. Fortunately for the men reaching under his bride's dress, the prince wasn't carrying Riptide with him that day.

No one else stepped in to help Annabeth, either, because grappling for the garter was an approved wedding tradition. The guests merely cheered as one burly noble tore off Annabeth's left garter, and another grabbed her right one. Other than Percy, the only person who didn't seem pleased with the tradition was Annabeth, whose skin had turned deathly white. Her grey eyes were wide with fear, and she clamped her thighs together tightly.

Percy couldn't help but wonder at her strange reaction. He couldn't think of any woman who would be happy to have strange men reach under her dress and remove a piece of clothing, but Annabeth didn't seem shy, she seemed frightened. The panic in her expression suggested that she thought the men would hurt her, but that thought seemed ridiculous—no one would dare violate or harm her in front of her husband, her father, or her father-in-law, the king.

Percy tried to make eye contact with Annabeth to assure her that she was safe, but that proved difficult when the men carrying him kept jostling him around. Thankfully, Annabeth seemed to calm down when her second garter was removed. The men took their hands out from under her dress, and she seemed to realize that they didn't mean her any harm, because the fear in her eyes subsided. Her skin changed from pale to bright red in a matter of seconds when the men carried her and Percy out of the Great Hall and towards the gatehouse.

The guests cheered loudly after them, but most stayed behind in the hall. Only Poseidon followed the men as they carried the bride and groom into the gatehouse tower, up the stairs to the first floor, and into the princess's chambers.

The bishop who officiated their wedding was already in the room, waiting for them to arrive. He raised his hands as soon as they entered the chamber, and then pronounced a blessing over them. "The Lord be with you."

"And with thy spirit." Poseidon and the men carrying the couple intoned.

The bishop then bowed his head to pray, "Bless, O Lord, this bedroom, and all who dwell in it: that they may abide in thy peace, and remain in thy will, and live in thy love, and grow old and multiply into length of days. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen."

He moved towards the bed, then raised his hands once more. "The Lord be with you."

"And with thy spirit." Poseidon and the men repeated.

The bishop then prayed again, "Bless, O Lord, this bed, you who sleep not, nor may sleep. You who guard Israel, guard thy servants who rest in this bed from all false dreams of demons. Guard them while they watch, that sleeping they may meditate upon thy precepts, and sense thee through sleep, that here and anywhere they may be guarded by the help of thy defence. Through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen."

The men carried Percy and Annabeth from the door to the bed, then they placed the couple down upon the mattress. Poseidon stepped forward as well, and everyone crowded around the bed as the bishop uttered the final blessing.

"Let us pray. May the hand of God be over you and may he send his holy angel to guard you all the days of your lives. Amen."

Poseidon, the bishop, and the men all crossed themselves, and then they left the room so that Percy and Annabeth could validate their marriage. Poseidon was the last to go; he turned as he crossed the threshold, sent Percy an obvious wink, and then pulled the door shut behind him.

The prince flushed at his father's behaviour. He waited a moment for his face to cool, and then rolled onto his side to face Annabeth. The princess stared boldly back at him, but her shallow breathing betrayed her nerves. When Percy tried to place a comforting hand on her shoulder, she flinched.

The prince drew back as if he'd been burned, "I'm sorry!"

Annabeth shook his apology off. "It's fine."

She sat straight up in the bed, and then looked Percy dead in the eyes. "I need you to confirm that your plans for this marriage haven't changed."

The prince's eyebrows drew together in a straight line. "What do you mean?"

"I'm referring to our agreement about the nature of this marriage," Annabeth clarified. She glanced nervously at the door, as though she was afraid that someone might be listening. "My condition hasn't changed."

"Oh," Percy propped himself up on one elbow. He struggled to meet her gaze as he realized what she was referring to, "Don't worry, I don't expect anything from you tonight. Our agreement still stands."

Annabeth let out a shaky breath and settled herself back down onto the bed. Her relief was palpable, and Percy wasn't sure whether he should take that as an insult or not. He rolled to the edge of her bed, then stood.

"I should leave."

He started to walk towards the door, but Annabeth's voice stopped him.

"No!" She pushed herself off the bed and practically ran towards him. "We still need to make this marriage look real. You should wait a few minutes, just in case someone is outside. If anyone noticed you leaving too quickly…"

She trailed off, but Percy understood her meaning perfectly. If he left her chambers too soon, and was spotted doing so, then it would be obvious that their marriage was not consummated. That would attract a lot of unwanted attention at court, and their marriage would be susceptible to an annulment before they were ready for one.

"Please," Annabeth grabbed his hand, sending a shot of warmth up the prince's arm, "stay for a few minutes."

Percy didn't have much choice in the matter, so he agreed. Annabeth's posture lost its rigidity the moment that he nodded, and they walked back to her bed together.

They spent the next two hours talking. Percy was surprised at how easily their conversation flowed, but chatting with Annabeth was easy when there weren't any candles around to make her hair glow golden and her eyes shine like silver. The prince made it through their entire conversation without embarrassing himself—although, it helped that Annabeth did most of the talking.

When Percy finally left, it was only because Annabeth's head was starting to droop. She insisted that she wasn't tired and he didn't have to go, but Percy excused himself anyways. He was glad that she didn't want him to leave, but it was late, and his eyelids were starting to feel unusually heavy. He needed to return to his chambers before he fell asleep, fully clothed, on top of his new bride's bedsheets.

Annabeth reluctantly acknowledged the logic of his argument, so they bid each other goodnight, and then Percy left her chambers. He walked down the corridor to his room with a tired smile on his face. Every time he spoke with Annabeth, he found himself liking her more. They'd exchanged several letters in the weeks preceding their wedding, and between those letters and the few times they'd met in person, Percy already felt a strong connection with her. Now that they lived together, he would get to see her more often. He looked forward to developing their friendship further.

Four guards greeted Percy outside his bedchamber door—two more than usual. They placed their hands on their swords when he approached them, but quickly stood aside when they recognized his face in the torchlight. Percy passed between them and entered his room, but he stopped short in the doorway when he spotted Poseidon sitting on his bed. Suddenly the two extra guards made sense.

The king stood as soon as he noticed Percy. He glanced at the prince's wrinkled clothes, then grinned. "So the deed is done?"

Percy's clothes were wrinkled from when the men dropped him onto Annabeth's mattress earlier that night, during the bedding ceremony, but he didn't bother to correct the king's assumption.

Poseidon took his silence as a confirmation. "There is no need to be embarrassed, Son. You are wed now; consummation is your right, and your duty."

The king clapped Percy proudly on the back, and then went to leave the room. He pushed the chamber door open, then paused. "Oh, and Perseus?"

The prince turned towards him with one eyebrow raised, "Yes, Father?"

Poseidon smirked, "Your mother and I are eager to welcome a new royal heir. Try not to keep us waiting."

~~~ A Kingdom Divided ~~~

Annabeth was tired; she barely managed to keep her eyes open after Percy left. Nevertheless, she resisted the urge to crawl under her bedcovers and sleep, because there were other matters that she had to attend to first. The servants would check her sheets for blood in the morning, and she had to make sure that they found some.

Thankfully, Annabeth always had a plan, so she came prepared. She pulled a necklace out from under her chemise, and then detached the small vial of chicken's blood that was hanging from the chain. She pulled back her sheets, removed the vial's cap, and then poured the chicken blood onto the bed. It was an unoriginal, but effective, method of faking lost virginity.

The princess let out a shaky breath as she watched the chicken blood dry. Then she replaced the cap and hid the vial. Finally, she stripped down to her linen undergarments and climbed into the bed, where she quickly fell asleep.

That night, she dreamt of life in Merchester Castle, where she no longer had to deal with her father's spite, her mother-in-law's censure, or her half-brothers' antics. For the first time in a long time, she slept with a content smile on her face.

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 **A/N: So how did you like the chapter? It had a lot more Percabeth than previous updates, and it included their first kiss. We don't have much insight into Annabeth's feelings yet, but Percy is clearly warming up to his bride.**

 **One reviewer asked me if this story will ever venture into an M-rating. Sorry to disappoint you, but the answer is no. I will have Percy and Annabeth grow closer, of course, but I won't write any explicit material. Percabeth is married, and they will fall in love, so they'll probably consummate the marriage at some point (I think, but I'm not sure, because I haven't gotten that far in the story yet). When/if that happens in this story, it will take place "off screen." In other words, I'll allude to it and show their reactions afterwards, but I won't describe the actual encounter.**

 **I hope it's not narcissistic of me to say this, but I really loved the following paragraph: "[Percy] allowed [the men]** **to lift both him and Annabeth up off the ground. Nevertheless, his hand did itch for his sword when they started grasping for Annabeth's garter. Fortunately for the men reaching under his bride's dress, the prince wasn't carrying Riptide with him that day." Protective!Percy is so much fun to write!**

 **Finally, I've had a few reviewers on AO3 ask me to include Thalia (and Thaluke) in this story. Is that something you would be interested in?**

 **That's all for now. Sorry for the long author's note, but thanks for reading and please review! As always, there are a few historical notes below for the people who are interested.**

 **Historical notes: (1)** **It was an actual medieval wedding tradition for the newlyweds to kiss over a "cake" (which, in medieval weddings, was just a pile of buns). In some countries, the husband would follow the kiss by breaking a bun from the cake over his wife's head (to ensure their fertility), which is the origin of modern cake smashing. I didn't include that tradition in the story, but I thought you might find it interesting. (2) Y** **oung male wedding guests (usually groomsmen) actually _did_ charge the bride and fight over her garters. Then they carried the newlyweds up to the bride's room for their bedding. In some countries (but not all), people actually stayed in the room while the bride and groom consummated their marriage! In other countries, like Atlantis in this story,** **male guests simply put the bride and groom to bed, then left them alone and assumed that consummation would occur. (3) I made up the dance between Percy and Annabeth. There are no existing records that describe the choreography of medieval court dances, but we do know a few common steps, so I just combined a few of those steps to create the dance in the story. (4) Every once in a while, Percy will give Annabeth random compliments in this story. That will seem a little out of character from the Percy we all know and love (who thought a lot of complimentary things about Annabeth, but rarely spoke them out loud). Nevertheless, men in medieval times were expected to compliment ladies openly and frequently. It was the "chivalrous" thing to do, so Percy's random compliments to Annabeth (such as when he called her beautiful at the feast) are natural and expected for men of the time. They're not out of character, they're just an example of how medieval Percy and modern Percy would have different habits, since both are a product of their times.**

 **Thanks for reading!**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Hey everyone! Here's the new chapter, and thanks for reading it!**

 **Thank you feuerrot10, Jedi1, bobywhy, PrincessOfAtlantis101, and aquachick521 for your reviews! I appreciate your kind words, and I've listened to your opinions (so I won't write Thaluke, but I will include Thalia-she's actually mentioned in this chapter, but we won't meet her until later). Also, I've fixed the error that I made in Chapter 5 regarding the order of the knights' processional. Thanks for pointing that out.  
**

 **Anyways, there's just one term you need to know before you read this chapter. That term is "garderobe," which was the toilet room in a medieval castle. It was typically separated from the resident's chambers by a long passage and door because it smelled so bad. It was commonly used for storage, as well, because the stench discouraged pests (e.g. moths) from sticking around around destroying the lord's belongings (e.g. clothes).**

 **I'll leave you with that pleasant thought. Enjoy!  
**

* * *

When Percy woke on the morning after his wedding, he had no idea what a hectic day awaited him. In fact, his morning began as usual—he woke at sunrise, offered prayers in the oratory, spent some time in his apartment, and ate his first meal at ten o'clock.

The excitement began after breakfast, when Percy and Annabeth's wedding guests left Merchester to return home. Percy stood behind Annabeth and watched her bid an awkward farewell to her family by the inner gate. She stood five feet away from the Chases and gave them each curtseys instead of hugs. The duchess curtseyed back, while the duke and his sons bowed. Then the family climbed into their carriage and left without a word. Annabeth blinked rapidly when the carriage left her sight—as if she was trying to hold back tears—but Percy saw her smile at the same time.

The prince shook his head. He would never understand women. How could they feel such opposite emotions as happiness and sadness at once?

He could've pondered that thought all day without finding an answer, but a deep voice pulled the prince out of his reverie.

"Prince Perseus!"

Percy fought back a groan as he turned to face the man who'd spoken. He acknowledged the noble with a stiff smile, "Duke."

Zeus—the Duke of Olympus—smirked back at him. "Please, accept my congratulations on your marriage. Lady Annabeth—forgive me, _Princess Annabeth_ —is an excellent match."

"Yes," Percy agreed. He saw Annabeth turn to look at him from the corner of his eye, "I can't think of another lady as suited to the position. We shall be very happy together."

Annabeth turned away, but she had a smile on her face, and that was enough to make Percy smile too.

"Of course," the duke agreed. "I wish you both the best." He paused, and dropped his voice to a whisper, "Please accept my condolences, as well."

"Condolences?" Percy spoke the word aloud, but he lowered his voice when several people glanced his way, "What for?"

"You don't know?" The duke widened his eyes in mock surprise, but Percy noticed a smug smile tugging at the edges of his mouth. Zeus was goading him, "I thought your father might've told you, but I guess I was mistaken."

Red-hot anger coursed through Percy's veins. He _hated_ when the king kept information from him, but told the nobles. It made him look like a fool, and Zeus brought it up at every opportunity. The duke never said anything openly disrespectful, but he constantly hinted that Poseidon didn't think Percy was capable of managing state affairs.

"I suppose," Zeus continued, "that I can understand the king's reticence to share this information with just anyone." Percy clenched his fists—he was not _just anyone,_ he was the crown prince of Atlantis!—but Zeus wasn't done speaking, "A wise monarch is wary of whom he can trust."

A new voice entered the conversation before Percy could respond.

"I'll try not to take that as an insult, Duke." Kronos moved to stand between Percy and Zeus, "Because I met with King Poseidon this morning, and he didn't share any sensitive information with me." The Duke of Titania gave a condescending sneer, "Is it possible that you've overestimated the importance of your information? After all, both Prince Perseus and I rank higher than you do—don't you think that the king would confide in us before he turned to you? We have _so much more power_ to help him deal with difficult issues."

The Duke of Olympus went red. His voice shook with barely controlled rage as he addressed Kronos, "Need I remind you that we are both dukes?"

"Yes," Kronos drawled, "but my duchy is twice as large and three times as rich as yours. Let's not pretend that our ranks are equivalent."

Percy coughed to cover a snicker. He'd never liked Kronos much, but maybe the Duke of Titania wasn't so bad after all. He certainly had his redeeming qualities.

Zeus didn't look like he agreed. He glowered at Kronos, "For all your power, this fact remains: the king did not trust you with the information that I gave him."

Kronos's sneer widened, "You spoke as though King Poseidon entrusted you, specifically, with sensitive information. I didn't realize that you were the one who shared the information with him."

The Duke of Olympus frowned, "I never said that King Poseidon shared the information with me."

"You implied it."

"No, I didn't. You misunderstood me."

"I misunderstood nothing," Kronos countered, "but we all know that, so let's not argue."

Zeus grunted to show his frustration, but he did not push the issue. He turned towards Percy, executed a shallow bow, and then marched swiftly off. He was barely out of earshot when Kronos spoke again.

The duke kept his voice at a whisper, so that only Percy could hear him, "I hope you don't mind me saying this, your highness, but I don't like the Duke of Olympus—I never have."

Percy nodded noncommittally and glanced around the bailey. He was going to let the matter drop, but then Kronos said something that caught his attention.

"I don't trust him."

The prince's gaze snapped back to Kronos, "Why is that?"

The duke sighed. His trademark sneer disappeared, and was replaced by a distressed-looking frown, "The Duke of Olympus likes to overstate his importance, and he frequently disrespects his superiors. Those habits concern me, because they suggest that he's dissatisfied with his current position at court; they hint at hidden political ambition."

Percy's blood ran cold at Kronos's implication. He glanced around the bailey to make sure that no one was listening, then shuffled closer to the duke and spoke in a soft voice, "That's a serious accusation. Has the Duke of Olympus said anything?"

"No," Kronos answered, "if he had, I would've told you straight away. I don't believe that he's an immediate threat—I just wanted to warn you about his behaviour, so that you could watch him more closely in the future."

The prince nodded, "Thank you, Duke. I appreciate your advice, and I'll take it to heart. But let's leave the subject now, because it's not wise to discuss these things in public."

Kronos agreed, "Of course, your highness. That's not what I came to discuss, anyways."

"Oh?" Percy raised a single brow to show that he was intrigued, "What did you want to discuss, then?"

"Two things," Kronos admitted. "First, I want to congratulate you and Princess Annabeth on your wedding. I wish you both a happy and fruitful marriage."

"Thank you. What is the second matter?"

"I spoke with your father this morning, and we agreed that my granddaughter, Lady Silena, would make an excellent lady-in-waiting for Princess Annabeth." Kronos's sneer returned, "I believe that King Poseidon asked the Duke of Olympus's daughter, Lady Thalia, to serve as a lady-in-waiting, as well. I thought you might like to know about both appointments."

"You thought correctly," Percy smiled. "Thank you for telling me."

Kronos startled the prince by grinning in response. The expression transformed his surly face into a much friendlier one, but it failed to reach his unusual gold eyes. Those eyes watched Percy closely, "I should get going. Congratulations again, Prince Perseus, and farewell."

"Farewell," Percy responded. He watched the duke leave, and then glanced towards the sky. A few white clouds blocked the sun from view, but it was still a beautiful day. In fact, it was perfect weather for tilting at the quintain. The prince decided to do just that, but he needed his armour first, so he headed towards the gatehouse in search of his squire.

He entered the gatehouse's southwest tower, and then climbed a spiral staircase to the first floor. He exited the tower at that floor and walked along the dimly lit corridor of the gatehouse until he reached his apartment. Two guards stood on either side of the door to make sure that only authorized people could get in. The guard on the left opened the door when he saw Percy approaching, but the prince did not enter his chambers immediately.

He stopped just outside the doorway and addressed the guard standing on the right, "Have you seen my squire? I wish to speak with him."

The guard nodded stiffly, "He is inside, my lord."

"Excellent," Percy responded. Then he stepped through the doorway and into his bedchamber.

The second guard returned to his post and closed the door behind him while Percy searched the room for Ethan. The squire was not there, so Percy walked to the right side of his bedchamber and opened the heavy wooden door in the center of that wall. That door led into his study, which contained a large desk that the prince rarely used, a small set of drawers, and a sofa and two chairs with blue upholstery. The seats were arranged around a blue rug and situated in front of an ornate stone fireplace.

Percy glanced around the room, but Ethan was not there, so he crossed the study and opened the door in the far wall. He stepped into a long, narrow corridor and walked to the end of the passage. A single door separated the prince from his garderobe. When he opened that door, he was greeted with the terrible stench of human waste. The scent was enough to make Percy's eyes water, but he was still able to see that Ethan was not inside the room.

The prince left the garderobe quickly, shut the door behind him to contain the smell, and then returned to his study. He planned to scold his guards for being lax in their duties—their failure to keep track of the visitors in Percy's chambers was a _serious_ lapse in security—but he never got the chance. The moment that he stepped into the corridor where his guards were standing, a page greeted him.

The page—a young boy of about eight years old—stood with his hands hidden respectfully behind his back as he delivered a message, "King Poseidon requests your immediate presence in his chambers."

Percy forgot all about his plan to reprimand the guards as he looked at the boy. "Did the king mention why he wants to meet with me?"

"No, my lord."

"Very well, then you may tell him that I'm on my way."

The page nodded, then scampered off to relay Percy's message. The prince followed at a slightly slower pace; he returned to the southwest tower, climbed the last flight of stairs, and then walked along the corridor until he reached his father's apartment. He passed between the soldiers that were guarding the entrance and stepped into the king's bedchamber. Poseidon was not there, however, so Percy moved to check the adjacent study.

He stopped short in the doorway when he noticed Poseidon pacing the room, "Is something wrong, Father?"

The king came to a sudden stop in front of his desk, and his head whipped around to look at Percy. He seemed surprised to see the prince, even though he'd asked Percy to meet with him.

"Perseus! Come in, Son, and close the door behind you."

Percy stepped forward, and then shut the door obediently. Once that was done, he turned towards the king with his eyebrows raised, "I received your message; you wish to speak with me?"

Poseidon nodded. He opened his mouth to speak, but closed it without saying anything. Then he dipped his head towards the other side of the room. The study was laid out just like Percy's, so the area where Poseidon gestured to had a sofa and two padded chairs situated around a large rug. The furniture was green, rather than blue, and the rug was brown, but it was otherwise identical to the prince's sitting area.

"This conversation may take a while," Poseidon explained, "so let's sit before we get started."

Both men moved towards the furniture, and each selected a chair on opposite ends of the sofa. As soon as they were settled, the king began to speak. "I met with a few of the nobles earlier this morning, to hear their reports on the provinces."

Poseidon paused, so Percy prodded him with a question, "What news did they share?"

"Nothing good," the king answered. His green eyes darkened ominously as he explained, "Atlantis's situation has worsened. I'll spare you the details, but there are a few things that you should know. First, the mysterious fires that kept troubling Lord Hermes's march have become more frequent—there are new blazes every night, now—and they've also started in nearby provinces. We still don't know what is causing them. Second, the raiding parties attacking Lord Ares's march have grown larger and bolder. Initially, the raiders would attack a town, slay its inhabitants, burn its buildings, and then run. Now, they've stayed in a few places long enough for Lord Ares's forces to confront them. The casualties of those skirmishes have been equal on both sides thus far."

Percy's eyebrows rose of their own accord. Lord Ares had the best-trained forces in Atlantis. If the raiders had inflicted that many casualties on his men, then they were not the same common barbarians that frequently bothered Ares's borders.

"Third," Poseidon continued, "the plague is still ravaging Lord Apollo's earldom. We're doing what we can to contain it—quarantining infected areas, praying for deliverance, and burning fires at every street corner to cleanse the air from miasmas—but the disease is still spreading."

The king stood from his chair and began to pace the brown rug.

"Fourth," he declared, "food keeps disappearing from storehouses across the country. I ordered the nobles to post guards outside the entrances after our last meeting, but that hasn't helped. The food keeps disappearing overnight, even though the guards all swear that they never let anyone in."

Percy's brow furrowed, and he shook his head in disbelief; nothing the king was saying made sense. Food didn't just disappear into thin air, and fires didn't randomly ignite themselves. Plague and invasion were unfortunate realities of their time, but it was unnatural for Atlantis to suffer so many calamities at once.

When he voiced that thought to the king, a grim frown flitted across Poseidon's face.

"You're right," the king admitted. He returned to his seat, and then ran a hand through his short black hair. "It _is_ unnatural for so much to go wrong at once. The people know it as well—with all the trouble we've been having, rumours of witchcraft have spread faster than we can crush them. A few hunts have broken out across the country, but after speaking with the Duke of Olympus this morning, those hunts are now the least of my worries."

Percy leaned forward in his seat. He smiled, despite the gravity of the situation, because he realized that Zeus had been wrong. The king _did_ trust Percy enough to share the duke's sensitive information with him, "What did the duke say?"

"He told me that the Bishop of Roma has been stirring up dissent among the people."

The prince's smile fell. He gaped at his father in shock, "What?"

Poseidon frowned back at him, "It's ridiculous, of course, but Bishop Octavian is telling the people that God has chosen a new king for Atlantis."

"Who?!"

"He won't say," the king sighed wearily, "at least not yet. Apparently, God will reveal the candidate when the moment is right."

"That's preposterous!" Percy leapt to his feet, "He's a fool! He's just bitter that we didn't listen to him about my marriage, and now he's trying to get his revenge. No one will believe him!"

Poseidon lifted both his hands and gestured for the prince to calm down, so Percy begrudgingly returned to his seat.

"You're wrong to say that no one will believe him," Poseidon spoke sadly, "because many already do."

"Then they're fools as well!" Percy spat. It was rare for the prince to become angry, but he was livid at that moment.

The king ran another hand through his hair, "They believe the bishop because he presents a convincing argument. He's won many people over by claiming that Atlantis's recent troubles are proof of God's anger with me, their king. Fire, famine, war, and plague are all instruments of God's wrath, so many people who listen to his arguments are convinced by them."

"They're not persuaded by his logic," Percy stated adamantly. "They just want to believe that what he says is true, because if it is, then they can end their suffering by turning on you."

The prince shook his head in disgust, "They're cowards who let their fear turn them against their king, but I'm not afraid." Percy's voice wavered slightly, revealing that statement to be a lie, but he carried on regardless, "If a rebellion breaks out, then I will fight for you. I'm certain that others will too—maybe not everyone, but _some_ people will be loyal to their king."

Poseidon smiled kindly at his son, "I never doubted you, Perseus. I know that you will stand with me, but I can't be certain about my nobles. If they all stood with me, we could crush a revolt, but many of them are too ambitious. They would side with the people if they thought that they could replace me as king. That's why I've made a few arrangements to ensure my most important nobles' loyalty."

That piqued the prince's interest. He cocked his head to the side, "Oh?"

Poseidon's smile widened, "I've invited the Ladies Thalia and Silena to serve as Princess Annabeth's ladies-in-waiting. Lady Thalia is the Duke of Olympus's daughter, and Lady Silena is the Duke of Titania's granddaughter. Having them in this household should give us insurance against the dukes—they could not side with the peasants in a revolt without risking the lives of their family members."

Percy nodded. Frederick would remain loyal because of Annabeth, so if the king could secure the other dukes' support, then the royal family had a strong position. In that way, the plan made sense. Unfortunately, Percy wasn't certain that it would be effective. He thought about Kronos's warning regarding Zeus's ambition, and an idea formed in his mind.

The prince looked at his father, and then said, "I've noticed some troubling behaviour from the Duke of Olympus; he constantly overstates his importance at court, and he doesn't show the proper amount of respect to his superiors. I'm concerned about the implications of those habits—they suggest that he aspires to a more powerful position at court."

The king nodded. He looked impressed with Percy's insight, so the prince didn't bother to give Kronos credit for the idea.

Percy paused, and then finished his thought, "Are you certain that the Duke of Olympus would side with us in a revolt, just because supporting the people would put his daughter in harm's way? I'm afraid that his ambition might outweigh his fatherly affection."

Poseidon frowned, "One can never be certain with these things. I admit that having Lady Thalia here might not guarantee the duke's loyalty, but, at the very least, it gives us some leverage over him. That's better than the alternative, which is to do nothing and have no leverage at all."

Percy accepted that logic with a reluctant nod. The king was right; his plan wasn't perfect, but it was better than nothing.

"Anyways," Poseidon sighed, "that is all the news I have for you, Son."

Percy smirked, "It's enough. I'm grateful that there's not any more to tell."

His comment brought a wry smile to the king's face, "I don't feel very grateful at the moment, but I suppose you're right—things could be worse."

Poseidon placed both his hands on the armrests of his chair, and then pushed himself into a standing position. He smiled down at his son, "Anyways, we shouldn't dwell on such dark matters. You are a married man now, Perseus, so spend the rest of this day with your bride. You'll be amazed to find that your worries melt away in her presence."

Percy doubted that—Annabeth had some distracting features, but he didn't think that anyone _,_ or anything, could take his mind off the conversation he'd just had. He kept that skepticism to himself, however, as he rose from his chair, bid his father a good day, and moved to leave the king's study. He was almost out the door when Poseidon called to him.

"Perseus?"

The prince stopped in front of the door, with his right hand raised to push it open. He let that hand fall as he turned towards the king.

"Yes, Father?"

Poseidon smiled, "Here's some advice from one married man to another: there will always be some task to keep you busy. You must never neglect your duties, but don't neglect your wife, either. If you spend time with her, she will adore you." The king softened his voice, "I know you did not choose Princess Annabeth as your wife, but trust me when I say that love can grow within a marriage. You can be happy together, if you try."

Percy didn't know how to respond to that, so he simply thanked his father and left the study. Nevertheless, Poseidon's words echoed in his mind as he sought Annabeth out and spent the rest of the day with her.

 _You can be happy together, if you try._

A small smile rose to Percy's face as he walked around the middle bailey with Annabeth. She was wrapped up in an animated speech about some subject or another, and Percy was doing his best to listen, but he found it difficult to concentrate, because a single thought kept replaying in his mind.

 _You can be happy together, if you try._

The prince's grin grew. He glanced sideways at his wife and realized that he was fortunate, because he didn't even have to try. Happiness came naturally to him in her presence.

* * *

 **A/N: I'm proud of this chapter-not because it's good, but because I had a really hard time writing it. I just couldn't get the words to flow for some reason, so it took me at least three times as long to write, but I'm proud that I worked through it! :)**

 **This chapter was mostly focused on the plot, but I still tried to fit a few Percabeth moments in at the beginning and the end. I'm trying to keep their relationship at a realistic pace, but hopefully I've conveyed that Percy already has some feelings for Annabeth, and that those feelings are slowly growing stronger.**

 **Thanks again for reading and please leave a review! I've included a few historical notes below (and I'm glad to hear that people are enjoying them).**

 **Historical notes: (1) There were no cars in the Middle Ages (obviously), so travelling long distances was a lot less convenient back then. The nobles that attended Percy and Annabeth's wedding couldn't simply return home at the end of the night (it was too far), so they slept over at the castle. The highest ranking guests were given private chambers, but when all the rooms were assigned, any "leftover" guests (which was the majority) were expected to sleep on the floor in the Great Hall. The guests all** **left for home the next morning (or, if the wedding celebrations lasted multiple days, then on the morning after the celebrations ended). (2) The plague was a terrifying disease that killed millions of Europeans during the Middle Ages. Medieval doctors didn't know how to treat the disease, but they blamed "evil miasmas" (miasmas = fog) for causing it. They claimed that burning fires on street corners would cleanse the air and prevent the plague from spreading. They also tried to contain the disease with early methods of quarantine (boarding up homes with sick people inside-any healthy people trapped in there were out of luck).** **Other than quarantine and fires, most people thought that their only hope of survival was to pray to God for deliverance.**

 **This last note isn't really historical, but the polite Canadian in me is struggling not to let Percy thank his servants. I'm actually surprised at how difficult this is, and I just want to remind people that that's how royals were back then. Percy is not being a jerk.**


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